100 Fragments of Eren x Historia
by XA - U
Summary: Collection of drabbles, AUs and a bunch of fic stuff on Eren x Historia. Types of stories will range all over and just encompass any theme that I'm in the mood for writing some EreHisu in, and will be irregular in content. It's mainly because I have a lot of ideas I wanna try but know I can't do full length stories so hopefully can collect bits/pieces here. Note on Spoilers inside.
1. Fragment 1 - Valentine's Day

**Disclaimer: I do not own Attack on Titan. It belongs to the rightful owner Hajime Isayama.**

**Basically what it says in the summary, mainly since I'd like to write all sorts of fics on EreHisu but know that I'll never get the time for more big fics, so decided to just use this as a compilation of sorts. These chapters are meant to be short… but I cannot guarantee that unfortunately! Either way, since my mood/taste on what sort of thing to write differs a lot from day to day, I hope I can at least be consistent at the end of it all to have produced the time's worth of content as I would hopefully be in the zone for a given type of fic.**

**Stories will range all over the place, and some chapters will also be 'complimentary' to the other fic but can just as well be read interdependently – I'd think so at least. (Such as this chapter!) Generally though they will be other AUs or alternative routes and will be in a 'extract'-like fashion, since… well… when it comes to writing… there's stuff I simply want to write… and stuff I dunno and don't want to! So yeah… this is mainly for 'rough sketches' as opposed to trying to compose a coherent (or semi-coherent/consistent at least I hope) long story.**

**I will do a chapter summary and note on spoilers at the start each time, since some chapter's definitely won't be to the liking of certain individuals but yeah… hope there might be something of interest along the way for y'all! Updates will be irregular. Also for reviews, there will obviously be a big delay for guests or may just forget to do it altogether – so just if you'd like to get a particular response to something from me, preferably use an account for PMing.**

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**Summary: The 14th of February has come and while Valentine is only common-place within Wall Sina, the both of them try and prepare the Eren and Historia have been in a secret relationship between both the military government and their comrades backs as neither wish to be involved with politics along with the various complications and threats that would come about as a result. …Eren and Historia try their best…?**

**Note on Spoilers: No explicit manga spoilers in this chapter, although there will be some hinting at a few, details are not revealed so spoiler free in essence since it would only maybe affect your opinions on the basement reveal perhaps? Very minor hinting in essence despite the heaps they learnt, nothing here is revealed.**

**Basically… late (surprise there lol… honestly though… I've generally been rarely tardy to anything I properly plan for the past decade lol and now… but anyways!) but yeah just finished a Valentine's fic now lmao and can't be asked to wait another year to post it, but yeah a month ad a half late!**

**Also main reason this is here and not in the main story (aside from extra chapter length) is because you shouldn't necessarily take it 100% seriously, but it's all meant to be seen as occurring in reality. It's sort of the bad/silly stunt people pull in real life and even in AoT like Potato x Sasha x Meat just bigger in a way, so yeah don't take it as necessarily a good fit for AoT's tone since Eren using his Titan power for silly things is like someone walking round with a rocket launcher down the streets and messing around with it – it's the line of reality that this fic sort of crosses and I think it's best I shut up now cause you get the point!**

**But yeah hope this might be enjoyable even if it messes up the point which it occurs in as this would happen within chapter 14 of the main fic once it reaches there, so yeah!**

"speech"

_'thoughts'_

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**Fragment 1 – Valentinstag**

**Late Winter of the Year 851 – Trost District Survey Corps HQ in the Early Morning**

A soft lick, cold to the skin yet maybe just a little warmer than the white ground. The snow had stopped falling by now, but the icy air defended its presence for a while longer, refusing the pale frost to melt and run watery down to the rivers.

The year's crop would have to be set soon, but as it often was, the Winter continued to stubbornly hold onto the hardened earth for as long as it could.

There had been a time when the brunet once welcomed the snow to the considerably warmer parts in Wall Maria, back when he lived in Shinganshina.

Even later on, as a refugee and then as a trainee, he didn't mind the winter days much at all. There was a lonely comfort to it, as if it was a familiar presence to him, teaching him how to harden his resolve wherever he was.

Stimulating his growth, into a fire that flowered in the bitter blizzards, unyielding to the ice cold winds and continuing to persist.

Neither flame melted snow, nor blizzard extinguished fire.

Eren's will, that once took on the flames, shooting scarlet holes into the twilight as the snowstorm went on.

He had thought his resolve to be unshatterable in that past.

But knowledge and truth crushed that flame easily.

And then the Winter felt no longer familiar to him.

No, that wasn't it. He realised that the Winter he was familiar with had departed, to a place where he could not reach, as he woke up, still in the cage.

Entrapped by chains that he could not break.

"Hah…" the Titan shifter breathed out the milky mists of cold, filled with a deep lingering emotion as he examined the pot again.

Kneeling back up, he held the container in both his hands. The brunet was outside, unfazed by the cold but still unconsciously bothered by how unfamiliar it now was.

He really should have dressed up more, or so he could hear his adoptive sister telling him. Actually Mikasa would probably just wrap him up anyway while her scolding fell on death ears.

Either way, that wasn't important to Eren right now.

Eren's eyebrow twitched. And then twitched again.

…

"GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA –"

"E-Eren?! What's wrong?" Armin stuttered outside just a few moments after Eren started his outcry, throwing the side door open in panic as he skid on the icy ground a little and had to reach onto the building's stone wall to keep balance.

Observing quickly, his eyes set on Eren in clothes far too thin for this time of year and the stiff expression on his face, comprehending just how loudly he had been screaming at the top of his lungs just a few seconds ago.

The Survey Corps within the building had all been roused suddenly, and Armin could here the complaints be yelled at each other from inside and could here the traces of Mikasa scattering about inside.

"A…Armin…" Eren twisted his head slightly to look at him and seemed to shudder a little at the shouting from within, now hearing footsteps thundering throughout the entire headquarters now, "…sorry… I was just…"

The blond had noticed his best friend sneaking out regularly in the morning, and had tried asking about it and following him once before, only to be get waved off and find Eren outside in the backyard of the building.

Armin hadn't taken it further after that, seeing that Eren may just be going out to get some space and alone time and decided to not question him further.

"Eren… let's go inside…" the blond got hit by a breeze of cold and tried shoving his hands into his pockets as they got bit, "… why did you just scream just now?"

Armin had been woken up earlier, hearing a rapid fire of swearing getting shot from Eren's mouth as he threw his shoes on and slipped out of their shared room. He had decided to follow him this morning, feeling concerned with how Eren hadn't been speaking much to him at all lately.

And he did just wanted to spend time with his longtime friend.

Armin knew that it was different now, and things would never go back to how they once were. He didn't know why Eren wouldn't talk about it, but he felt like trying to make an advance towards his childhood friend while he still had the time.

"Nothing… sorry I shouted… a bit too loud," Eren seemed to almost snap, containing his anger as if not wanting to direct it on Armin himself.

The blond looked at the container Eren dropped down. The container appeared to be made of some wood and there was soil spilling out of it from where it rested at Eren's feet. It almost looked like…

"What were you doing with that?" Armin gestured, racking his brains for any importance it might have to somebody.

"Nothing," Eren said in finality, walking briskly past him and going inside, "let's go inside. I probably woke some people up…"

Armin stood there a while longer, dissapointed a little that Eren was still having to deal with things troubling him. The blond took another glance at the wooden box, almost looking like a hand-made flowerpot.

'_Eren has been coming here every morning… Just what is he…'_ Armin thought, looking back to the doorway that Eren had left open for him and the cold to get in, considering if there was any harm in having a closer look at it.

He turned round and took a few step forwards to the mess. Eren had dropped it to the floor. Was it something important?

He was about to kneel down and turn the container upright. But then a strong gust of wind blew in and crawled up his shirt and neck, causing him to wince a little.

Armin shook his head and quickly returned back through the door, shutting it tight. _'Maybe I'll check again later…'_ he thought, before following inside and going to find his brunet friend.

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**Late Winter of the Year 851 – A Few Days Earlier in the Kitchen**

Eren kept cutting the food at a fast pace, desperately trying to quell his worries and focus on the task. In a few days, the crocus plants that he had planted would hopefully boom at last.

He had been taking care of them for the past 2 months after he sneaked out and spoke to a flower vendor.

Buds of mirror blue, with a gentle transference from several shades of blue and almost purple. The colour of the flowers that seemed to appear within many of his dreams, made him think so much of the sky, ocean and the colour of Historia's irises.

A beautiful blue that he could never grow tired of. Eren had tried to talk to several shopkeepers and gardeners that he was recommended, all to find the same flower.

There seemed to be no luck, with nobody able to help him. It's not like he had much to go on as he vaguely tried recalling the shape.

The flowers which grew just outside Shinganshina district in Wall Maria. By the tree which he would always walk too in his childhood when sent to collect firewood before the winter.

He would never forget the colours ranging from cerulean to azure but aside from that, he couldn't recall much else with certainty.

Eren didn't know why he was so drawn to them, and suggested that it's already late to start planting flowers, he had decided to take anything which would resemble the same colour.

He had been given some of the more common crocuses, which had a somewhat similar colour and a set had already been planted in a gardening pot at the side of a flower vendor.

After returning to the Trost district where the Survey Corps was going to be based for the winter, he had hidden them in the backyard and told nobody about them.

Spending the next 2 months, hoping that they would sprout their flowery colour, Eren had tended and checked them everyday, hoping to gift them to Historia.

Carefully keeping the snow off, making sure that the soil was not overly wettened by rain, and moving them around so that the sun would shine upon them for as many hours in the day as possible.

'_The shoots have sprouted and the buds have grown a lot now… The flower better open up sometime soon…' _Eren prayed in his head, knowing that it wouldn't be much longer until that day came.

Valentine's Day.

Not only that, but it coincided with almost exactly a month since Historia's Birthday. Recalling that feeling of his precious bird, he knew he wasn't going to screw this up.

He vaguely recalled his childhood as he screwed his eyes over and said "yuck" when his parents would go at _it_ and somehow even Mr Hannes would be celebrating it with his wife.

He had been of the typical mind at how stupid the whole thing was. Until Historia happened. He didn't think it was that silly of an event anymore.

Or maybe he did to some extent, as he had wordlessly spent the past week listening to Jean telling everyone to not hold back on consideration or his feelings.

It was just an excuse to do something for Historia, especially when the Survey Corps operations were temporary suspended until the snow would begin to melt.

While tending to the flowers for a while now, Eren had moved to the kitchen now and had been trying to create some pastries as a confectionery.

Historia seemed to love pastries and frankly, so did Eren when he thought about it. The loaves of bread, often dried and almost stale cold lumps of once warmly cooked flour. Perhaps it was a feeling of 'trying something different' from the well baked pastries of the interior and instead something more homemade and wrought.

Eren knew that flowers and sugary sweets were simply basic, but he knew Historia would adore the gesture no less.

He clearly remembered the words she spoke to him almost a month ago, knowing Historia wasn't simply playing the considerate act and saying 'if it's from you, then that's all that matters'.

Historia meant it. Between the two of them, every gift truly meant everything, no matter how small.

They gave each other gifts because they wanted to.

Because they truly wanted to.

"Damn it, is it ready or a bit longer…?" Eren questioned aloud, whisking the lump of dough once more, that was just moments before a mixture of flour, sugar, butter and milk.

"Um, a little longer," his instructor told him, poking her head beside him. The brunette teacher grabbed another spoon and added another scoop of flour inside as Eren kept stirring at a rapid rate. "… I think."

She tried sneaking a finger inside of the bowl and scooping up a bit of the raw dough, just as Eren flicked away her hand.

"Hey Sasha, this is different from meat and potatoes, are you su–" Eren tried to seek some reassurance, knowing he didn't have many other options after Armin had been unable to help him.

Eren did remember that Jean was the one who had one a face-off against Sasha though about a year and a half ago, but he wasn't quite ready to face the questions Jean would have and no doubt mistake it as a move on Mikasa.

He had no idea how it took him so long to realize that was why Jean would always get mad at him out of jealousy, and he could only thank Historia for giving him an unimpressed look and educating him.

"Hey, you promised you won't talk about me and potatoes again if I helped!" Sasha pouted and complained, lightly elbowing him, "making bread and stuff ain't hard… also you said I would have a ¾ share as well."

Eren snorted, looking in doubt at the mess of what was meant to become cinnamon rolls. He had little time to spare and no alternatives at hand, "I said you could have no more than half and only if they come out well."

Cinnamon rolls. The cinnamon itself wasn't cheap either, though nothing Eren was unable to procure given the connections the Scouts had made with the Reeves Company and was able top import them from the West of Wall Rose.

And money wasn't particularly a problem either with Historia nagging him every time before he left and forcing 'pocket money' into his hands by the worth of a garrison soldier's monthly pay.

Eren had no intention of spending Historia's money off freely, especially when it was coming from her slowly selling off all the palace's furniture. It's true that Historia didn't need any overwhelming luxuries but he still felt she was going through far too much effort just to stuff help him financially.

And she only seemed to only give money to him.

The least he would do is make sure to spend a big portion on things for her. Pastry. Historia's pastry. Cinnamon rolls. Historia's cinnamon rolls.

Continuing the task uncertainly, Eren continued stirring as the mess of swirls became… a different shape of messy swirls.

'_Shouldn't it be kneaded together? What's the point in spreading it all around then…'_ Eren thought and looked to the side and slapped Sasha's hand who was snagging at ingredients he wasn't even going to use.

She pouted at him and kept munching on some strawberries that had been in the stores. They hadn't technically asked for permission to use the kitchen and someone was bound to notice the missing ingredients.

Actually even if Eren had not brought Sasha with him here now, there would still be a missing list of food in their stores sooner or later. Shaking his head at her, Eren recited the only thing he needed to focus on right now.

'_Historia's cinnamon rolls. Got to do it. Historia's cinnamon rolls. Go to do it. His–'_

A few times, Eren had asked himself why he chose to do cinnamon rolls amongst the other possible options. It's not like Historia specifically had been wanting to try some – so far as he was aware at least.

The answer was simple. Eren felt he could understand most things about her. But there was one thing he didn't know.

He started breathing a lot more heavily. Eren mentally struggled to picture her. Biting down with an 'omp' into the side of the pastry, he could only imagine how adorable she would look however she ate it.

'_Are you the type to bite straight into it, or to pull out the swirly dough and eat it from one end to the other?!'_ Eren debated in his head, thinking whether Historia would want to unwrap it like a string or start chomping into the middle first.

It was a very important thing to know. Whether your other half goes to the centre first or unwraps the gift.

On one hand, if she eats straight into it, then chances are there will be a few bits of sprinkled cinnamon that would get stuck on her lips, giving Eren the excuse to trail a line around her jawline and wait for the moment to kiss her clean.

On the other, if she starts peeling it open and around before eating it, her fingers would be very sticky from the sugar mixed in, giving Eren the excuse to start licking her fingers clean and needing to suck her digits one by one.

Would Historia go for the heart and dig outwards.

Or around and in towards the centre of the bun.

Searching for what is within and how everything was build.

Observing around at how everything is connected to the core.

…

"Hey, Sasha… aren't eggs needed as well or something?" Eren asked, noticing how everything between the dough and the moisture was frail, breaking and disconnected.

"O-oh, a-ah y-yeah, I forgot about those…" Sasha coughed and scratched her face slightly, waving her ponytail into Eren's face a little as she stumbled around awkwardly, "um… those should have gone in at the start… I think."

Eren scowled and looked around and at Sasha in discontent who forced a smile at him, trying to play innocent.

"Uh, whatever let's just put them in now," Eren decided, already feeling a bit of dread in his stomach, "where are they now?"

"O-Oh, you still needed those… then er…" Sasha trembled and looked around the room before forcing herself to face Eren again.

He wasn't the brute and reckless kid who always was around Mikasa anymore, who did scare her off a little back then.

No. Right now, Sasha backed away with true terror as Eren held the intimidation of some bloodthirsty tyrant who was about to exact revenge on her with extreme prejudice and hardened titanic power.

Sasha also felt like it was the exact same feeling when from when she and Connie had gone with Eren to see Historia. She had accidentally taken just a small sip or three from the cup Historia had prepared for everyone, and yet the Queen had suddenly grown an aura of rage around her and refused the servants to feed her while she watched everyone else gauging at the feast in front of her.

Sasha had sworn to never get on Historia's bad side after they made up after that near extinction event, though she never figured out why that drink of whatever it was tasted so sweet. Or why there were two straws in it. Or why she had unspeakable fantasies that left her very excited all night.

"A-Ah, wait you can use yogurt or something for binding!" Sasha pleaded and thought of an escape route as she felt Eren's flames calming for a moment.

"We don't have any yogurt," he replied, just as Sasha felt her world spin round as if it was mocking her before a King.

"A-Applesauce or s-some fruitjuice?!" Sasha considered, racking her brains for anything that she heard were used in places chickens weren't had.

"You used the last of it up a week ago when you made that pie," Eren reminded her, allowing Sasha to recall the heaps she had spilled by 'accident' and had to lick clean.

Sasha's life was on the line as she decided she would blame chickens, for not producing enough eggs across the world, to the death.

Actually she should blame the eggs from which the chickens came from for not being greater in number.

Actually eggs would be useful so she shouldn't blame them.

Actually she should blame the chickens before them for not laying enough eggs.

But what if it wasn't the chicken's fault that it could lay enough eggs?

She should be blaming the eggs they came from for not surviving.

But then again, the eggs can't do anything about that.

She should blame the chickens that laid the eggs from which came the chickens that produced the eggs that didn't survive to become chickens and lay the eggs that she could barter for her life in front of Eren right now.

It wasn't her fault that eggs went with everything. In fact, if anything was to blame then it should be the chickens that laid the eggs from which came the chickens that produced the eggs that looked so tasty and seduced Sasha's stomach with half an hour ago.

Or maybe she should blame the eggs those chicken came from.

Sasha also considered quitting the corps, running away into the distant country and becoming a philosopher.

Something told her that her chances of survival where much greater that way as Eren approached her with the great kitchen whisk of destruction.

"O-O-O… O… O…" Sasha breathed out in steady paths as she clenched her heart dramatically and felt her knees going weak, "O… O… O… il… Oi…l…. Oil… Oil…"

"… Oil?" Eren calmed his advance and looked a her confused, "but wouldn't that make everything run even more?"

"S-So long as i-it's v-vegtable oil or something… and water should work…" Sasha tried to cling onto her last hope.

Eren stared at her questioningly for a while longer before drawing back the supreme whisk of judgment away from her and giving Sasha room to breathe once more.

Stumbling in a daze and unable to tell up from down, she somehow managed to hand Eren what he needed and prayed for

Eren sighed for the umpteenth time, knowing just how hard it was to get things done properly, knowing full well that Historia would be struggling just as well on the opposite end of the line.

He wanted to go see her now.

Eren wanted to embrace her, to tell her simply to forget it all.

It was just another day and they could have their own Valentine's day at a different date whenever they wanted, however many times they wanted.

But it was an excuse for them to be elsewhere under the sun and in a place where the land wasn't separated by walls nor a couple hundred kilometers of land.

Eren wanted to rush out and see her now.

But he couldn't without punishment from his superiors.

But…

Just a few more days.

In just a few more days, the flowers should bloom, the pastries should be come out fine and the gift was already ready.

"O-Oh…" Sasha suddenly blurted out and Eren turned to her again, questioning her furiously, "t-t-that may have been a bit too much oil that you added… E-Eren, t-that's a k-knife, you're… E…EEEEKK-"

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**Late Winter of the Year 851 – A Few Days and Minutes Later in Hanji's Office**

"So you started shouting and woke everyone up this morning because you accidentally slammed the door on your foot?" Hanji rubbed her head and tried to verify the simple and yet for some reason unbelievable excuse.

"Yes… it really hurt…" Eren nodded and tried to act by reaching down and rubbing his foot.

"And why were you going out this morning?" the older woman called it to attention. She had heard reports from Captain Levi as to how Eren seemed to leave his post and duties a lot more often now.

Yet she couldn't bring herself to punish him like the captain would in her own form of a mop and bucket.

She didn't have the strength to punish him after all that had happened.

Eren didn't reply, only feel into solemn passiveness.

He had been doing that a lot.

Simply quiet and in the background. So small that he seemed to disappear off so easily despite being their most important asset.

And then came messages from the capital and excuses to leave the headquarters frequently.

Was it that painful to be around them for him? Hanji couldn't deny concern over his behaviour but knew no way of approaching it from her new mantle.

She would have to enforce stricter discipline if the brunet kept shirking his responsibilities.

But…

'_It's fine for now. We have time. We can all rest a little before our enemy would strike again,'_ Hanji decided, slumping down into her chair gently while Eren stood before her desk unmoving.

She was weary as well. Saying goodbye to those who didn't exist beneath their tombstone, again and again.

Until now…

"Well nevermind that now. There's something important that I need to talk to you about," she began. Eren kept his face limply downwards, not even making eye contact or any response to her.

The almost middle-aged woman coughed and tapped her fingers against the desk, trying to get his attentions as she pushed over a letter towards him that she had received this morning.

"Eren… are you and Historia…" Suddenly, his eyes seemed to glow again, and his head swiftly yet somehow almost unnoticeably snapped back up to the bespectacled woman's face as she fixed him the most serious stare that her strength allowed her.

'_SHIT! Why the hell is the world picking on me today?!' _Eren spewed out every curse and his body began buckling up and sweating in panic. _'SON OF A BITCH! How did she find out about us?!'_

By no means did this mean the end though. _'So long as I can convince commander Hanji to keep quiet about it…'_ Eren began thinking of a plan.

He hated it. Having to keep secret about such a thing. Some small part of him questioned himself if the whole secrecy was just taking the overly dramatic route.

It's not like their lives were about to be threatened, but getting caught up with endless cycles of politics and accusations of the military wishing to install themselves permanently into the heart of power was not something either would ever want.

After all… a some point, Historia would be required to produce an heir. The thrown had to be held by someone after all, even if it was mainly for show, her bloodline also was special and may even be desired to be preserved should the secret behind it be revealed.

"… terms?"

If… the military actually found out about it… the way to use the Founding Titan power. He breathed out steadily, reorganizing his thoughts to how they were about a month ago.

Eren was the only one who knew right now. But he held the feeling that someone else would figure it out later or that the truth would eventually come out at least.

"… Eren, you listening?"

Historia might even be forced into it all… and their relationship would quickly be called into question if exposed.

Concealing matters which threatened the safety of their whole nation, it wouldn't take much more to question what else the pair of them might be hiding and both lose any credibility or trust they had.

"Eren?"

Their relationship had to remain a secret.

The entire affair would create sparks and conflicts from the remaining nobility as well, refusing to accept a common man to sit beside the Queen, no less considering that animosity still could be found against him in secret gatherings… or so Historia warned him about before reassuring that she will protect him from the centre.

He had to gain commander Hanji's trust now, even if it meant risking everyone's trust in him should the day come that the way to activate the Coordinate was exposed.

"Eren! Hey, I'm speaking to you!" Hanji knocked her hand on the table, now quite annoyed.

"… Huh?" Eren feigned a cough, and stood at attention again, hoping that his mental debate had not shown on his face.

The commander sighed and looked concerned, pulling up an envelope that Eren quickly spotted had the royal seal on it.

"I just asked you if you and Historia are on good terms?" she queried once more.

Eren brought himself together and realised what she had been asking. _'__Does Hanji not know… no, she surely suspects it, I can't let my guard down,'_ he decided. He would have to answer carefully.

"Yeeesssss…?" Eren hissed like a snake, answering with little confidence. He kicked himself as Hanji dropped her mouth a little and screwed up her face.

"…" she looked doubtfully at him, and for some reason, it gave Eren an odd impression. "… Right. Looks like you don't know."

She seemed to wait for him to say something else. When he didn't and just maintained eye contact while biting his lip, the commander sighed and tapped the envelope in front of him, bringing it to his attention.

"This is…" Eren picked it up and looked it over. The royal seal was deeply imprinted on it, causing him to jump a little, "Historia…"

Without asking for permission, he pulled the already opened envelope up and searched through for the letter within.

'_A royal summons…'_ Eren read through the letter, remembering a few times when Historia had simply used this for the two of them to meet without attracting too much attention.

Of course, she couldn't send it every time as it would get suspicious. And it was supposed to be used only for urgent business and for legal cases or matters of the utmost importance concerning state affairs.

"…" Eren kept reading, screwing up his eyebrows as he looked at it closely.

It was a warrant for his arrest.

Signed by Historia herself.

"… Oh… I'm sure Historia is just joking about… this, commander…" Eren spoke after he confirmed Historia's signature with a twitch of an eyebrow. If he looked closely… he could even swear he saw the dot drawn in a tiny love heart shape.

"Even it was her Majesty, she is not permitted to do such things like this as a joke," Hanji pressed the severity.

Eren took in the words, remembering Historia's scary assistant that would give him knowing looks that chilled to the bone and did not permit Historia to mess around in her presence.

"I doubt she would be messing around full knowing the risk this has," she enforced, "which is why I'm asking, seeing as the charge you are being accused of isn't listed, are you and Historia on good terms?"

'… _Like you have no idea…'_ Eren kept to himself, reigning in any worry that their relationship was suspect for now.

This was a typical prank sort of Historia's that she had already pulled similar on a number of nobles already. At Eren's suggestion. He could already see her adorable smirk in his head before she would give a coy giggle as he looked up at her helpless before her power.

Come to think of it… Eren did accidentally open that damned bathroom door into her face last they met and knocking her out for the remaining duration of his time.

It was her fault for being behind the door and doing… whatever it was she was doing.

Or so Eren decided before trying to wake her and then laying her on the desk after bandaging her head a little.

He had made sure to tell her maids to watch over her after they entered, telling her that the Queen was taking a nap who then laid Historia in bed and asked him to leave.

Surely she wouldn't be that mad at him…

"… There may have been something that she would be unhappy about me for… but I wouldn't call it anything serious," he opted to mention.

"Such as?" she asked, drawing in breath.

"I-I didn't touch her at all! I just… the damn door… And I didn't run away just like that, I… waited for her maids to take care of her before going…" Eren argued, an image of how a big understanding could come about now.

Some of the maids didn't seem very fond of Eren either whenever he was around and Historia and him were sneaking around together, as the blame seemed to fall on him after they noticed how their keys seemed to go missing whenever he visited.

Them starting rumours about Eren assaulting the Queen suddenly didn't seem too far fetched. He was still sure that Historia was only doing it to get them together on this day, but…

"So, um… I won't be punished f-" There was obviously no way he would be executed and there wasn't much to confiscate from him, but in terms of penalties that could be arranged…

"If this was a year ago, then you could expect to have your tongue, ears or one of your hands cut off. Not that it would do much good for you," Hanji informed him, mumbling the last part to herself.

"Right…" Eren accepted the likely result. Jailtime seemed to be all they could actually do against him, and Historia could easily resolve that. If… she was in the mood.

Hanji didn't say anything more, so Eren turned around to the door, taking it as his cue to leave. He pressed down the handle when she spoke again. "Eren."

"Commander?" he called back to her.

The room fell silent and the air seemed to just feel a little less comfortable.

"… The snow will begin to melt soon. I'll obviously receive word on whatever they'll have you do but tell them anyway that you'll need to return here by that time," she said. Their operations would begin a pivotal moment.

The end of the mindless Titans. The beings he swore he would destroy. Though it wasn't by his hand, it was by Eren's Titan power that such a future now looked realistic.

And of course… it was thanks to Historia. And everyone else as well who had allowed them to get this far.

"I will commander," Eren turned round and saluted her once more. Feeling more than ever, just how conflicted the gesture was.

It was something he never thought of back then as he truly dedicated his heart. Revenge had driven him on for so long and so blindly that he had in the past completely thought himself to willing to dedicate everything to humanity.

He had gotten lost in his rage and by the time he noticed, his actions were already contradicting some of the things he had lived for.

The case was so different now, yet more difficult to swallow than ever before as he dropped his right hand from over his unresolved heart.

He would truly dedicate his body, power and life. But to what and the reason behind it had become as unclear as fog and smoke shrouding the morning and blocking out the sun.

After all… he did belong to someone else already.

"The carriage will be here at noon, in the meantime, you'll be on kitchen duty for causing that disturbance so early in the morning," Hanji instructed him off before pulling out another piece of paper and beginning to write once more.

He closed the door behind him, breathing out a sign of relief. Their relationship was safe for now. The day wasn't a completely picking on him today.

'_Oh! That's right… the cinnamon rolls should be ready now…'_ Eren thought, fastening his pace towards the kitchen. They at least have had to surely come out right.

Would Historia go for the centre or the end?

* * *

'… _Oh, if I'm seeing Historia, I shou__ld...__'_ Eren thoughts switched suddenly, remembering what Historia had mentioned a couple weeks ago.

It felt embarrassing to think of and do at her instruction as though Historia was like a mother trying to get children to brush their teeth more often.

Actually that's pretty much what it was, except Historia's motherly feeling was washed down with tender affection when she enters her 'mom' mode.

…

' "_What's this for?"_ _Eren had said confused, examining the instrument. If he didn't know any better, it looked like some toothbursh, just properly made compared to the wood utensils he had used his whole life. Or didn't use most nights._

"… _My breath isn't that bad though right?" Eren tried to make a light chuckle. Historia opened her mouth and shut it, looking at him uncertainly. "… oh, if it's b-"_

"_N-No, i-it's really not awful!" Historia tried to reassure him with difficulty, and started blushing hard, "but… um, well… i-if… you want to go… go… t-t-tongue a-and tongue…"_

"_You mean…" the heat to his face rivaled the other's. They had so far reached lip locking now. And hand holding. "S-So if I'm brushing really well, we can then move onto…"_

"… _Yeah," nodding timidly, she tried her best signature coy smile which didn't come out so well, "so be a good boy and -"_

"_I'll brush them three times a day!" Eren exclaimed, jumping at excitement, "no, I'll do it four times a day!" _

"_O-Okay, you don't have to brush that often but -" Historia smiled at him questionably. His breath wasn't actually that bad at all, the only reason she made it up was to start the conversation of the 'next stage'._

_They had been comfortably closing the distance between their lips easily. It was just the one time but when Eren tried prodding his tongue forward, she had not expected it and broke their passionate kiss._

_Being who he was, Eren of course started apologizing over the top and that time had deterred him from any further attempts at prodding her lips apart._

_She had been ready then already, only the rushed moment made her feel she simply wanted to lay in his embrace in the few minutes they were able to get together after she dragged him from the corridor to an empty room when the Scouts visited as a group._

_Historia had struggled to then respond after that, not knowing how to bring it up and was annoyed at herself for not going ahead the first time and not even giving him a reason why. _

"_I'll do it fives a day then!" he proclaimed this time, holding the toothbrush as it were an instrument given by God as a sign for him to ascend to the next heaven._

"_You don't need to be that excessive," she laughed at how adorable he looked when he no longer had the depressed air around him just like she had been once everything changed, "there's no way you can do it that often though…" '_

…

Eren was now brushing six times a day, once after and before he sleeps, once every time after his three meals or the times at which he would have them on a good day, and once in the middle of the night whenever he would 'wake from a dream'.

The memories and mix between fiction and reality seemed to often focus on Historia herself. Escaping from them almost very night, he would go out and wander like he always did.

And then suddenly have the urge to brush his teeth in pitch darkness when he remembered that Historia would probably like him to.

He had not mixed any of his scheduled six times a day in the past 2 weeks ever since Historia first suggested that he simply 'brushed more often'.

Eren doubted this often was what Historia meant but he satisfied himself with the image of the small blonde girl praising him and giving him some more kisses as a reward.

Actually Historia probably wouldn't do that if she found out, and just stare disbelievingly for a few moments before laughing at him for the rest of… his life.

…

There were more fingers on his hands than times he would spend this any particular day again.

'_What am I doing…'_ he pondered once more, as with many a time since that day.

The Titans were on the verge of extinction and the operations would re-initiate soon. But that could change easily, just as their understanding of the Titans had many times since.

The snow would soon recede from the fields and wastelands and flood the river banks with dragged along soil and earth.

Once that happened, the horses could then travel across the lands of Wall Maria again. There was a lot planed for the future that he would have to see to, starting in one more week's time.

And yet… he could hardly spare little thought on that.

What filled his mind was…

'_Historia's cinnamon rolls. Centre or end. Historia's cinnamon rolls. Centre or end. Historia's cinnamon rolls. Centre or end. Historia's cinnamon rolls. Centre or end. Historia's cinnamon rolls. Centre or end. Historia's cinnamon rolls. Centre or end. Historia's cinnamon rolls. Centre or end. Historia's cinnamon rolls. Centre or end. His–' _

Such a question could only be answered if there was a little more than a few crumbs remaining in the pantry where they should have been kept.

"…" Eren's chest felt like it was thrown into a pit of emptiness and disappear as he blinked and readjusted to find the same image in front of him.

He drew in a sharp breath when a hand suddenly seized his shoulder and a bald head popped up next to him.

"Hey, Eren, there anymore of those sweet rolls left?" Connie asked, indifferent to Eren's twitching eyes and contorted face of horror. "Oh man, Mikasa must have gotten here before me."

The Titan shifter felt something snap within him.

"Co...nnie? What do you mean Mikasa… she doesn't even like sweet things," Eren questioned, knowing how Mikasa seemed to never like anything besides plain bread and soup.

He had been sure Sasha would have been involved given only she and Eren had hidden the dozen or so pastries.

"Oh you know, Sasha had been acting slightly weirder than usual, said something about how we are all descended from chickens and stuff like that. But then she said about some sweet rolls in here you guys were making for everyone and begged us to go get them for her since she's become weak from hunger… so she says," So Sasha was involved, albeit indirectly.

"So me and Mikasa go, and I needed the bathroom, so…" Connie stopped talking and looked around the room again.

Eren was gone.

* * *

**Late Winter of the Year 851 – The Scouts Dining Hall**

"H-Hey guys, don't hold back on my account, alright?" Jean told them all, looking a bit down while he sat next to Sasha, and trying to get people to notice his new hairstyle after brushing his now shining hair back with wax.

"Hold back on what Jean?" Sasha moaned from beside him. She had changed her mind about being descended from chickens.

"I-I mean, hey Sasha… do you like something that's different about me today?" he tried to get a response out of her, making a point to emphasize his hair to her.

"… No? Your the same Jean as yesterday, except a bit more annoying than usual, so that's not something I really like," the brunette replied, crushing Jean's heart just a little.

"O-Oh right…" he shrunk into his chair, looking over the table at Floch who sat a distance away from the rest of them. His hair transformation suddenly didn't feel so successful.

"I think you look nice Jean," Armin offered a compliment in Sasha's place, trying to cheer him up in her place.

"T-Thanks… no offense Armin but –" Jean scratched his chin, not knowing how to exactly respond. Did nobody else know what day it is?

"Hey Sasha, Mikasa's coming," Armin called the Ackerman's approach, carrying a tray and a dozen pastries on it.

"AHH, MIKASA YOU'RE MY –" Sasha was silenced by a super fast piece landing straight into her mouth, bringing her back to life for a little longer.

The ravenette placed the whole tray as everyone looked in and saw the still warm and gently paid pieces of bread, with a sprinkled like brown swirl going all around it, as it built up into the centre where the shape came to and end.

A soft bit of steam could be seen still seeping out through the gaps, carrying a sweet allure about them.

Jean and Armin looked in wonder at it, the latter surprised that Eren could manage such a thing now while the former tried to reach in slowly.

He had always remembered his childhood friend complaining about having to mind the kitchen. Though that had ceased ever since they became refugees, he presumed that Eren's mother's death was the cause, as opposed to him getting an actual liking to the act.

"Eren made these, so it's not fair for us to…" Mikasa had tried to say, feeling a new sensation beating through her heart. Had Eren done these specifically for… her?!

The thought of Eren confessing his feelings to her while interlocking hands and telling her to wait for him after he had to go to the capital… again… and saying that he'll have something important to say when he got back, filled her head.

And everyone else too… but they were surely for her and Armin first, it couldn't be a mistake that he had been preparing them for this day of lovers.

It had to be the case. Who else was there for Eren to gift such a thing to?

"H-Hey… Mikasa?"

He may have been acting distant away from them, but whenever he did speak, he always seemed so kind and considerate now.

Perhaps he was reflecting on exactly that and their relationships with them all… now with his time at hand, perhaps he was thinking of how to spend it now more than ever.

"S-So Mikasa, d-do you notice anything different about me today?"

Mikasa had resolved herself in her heart a long time ago that she would protect him, and that was not going to change here.

She would not break her promise. She couldn't. Mikasa wanted to be together at the very end, and for him to look at her in the same way she did…

"Hey, Mikasa…" Jean's voice and Armin's nudging broke her out of her trance, looking to her friends emotionlessly on the surface only.

"What is it?" she spoke in her usual calm and almost toneless demeanour, looking down to the… already half empty tray…

"So… you notice anything dif–" Jean tried to begin his question again, not feeling the mood was right but deciding he had to at least try and go with it now.

"Sasha. Why are there only 6 left already?" Mikasa turned the accusations to the hunter girl, sitting besides Jean on the other side of a table while she stood next to Armin's increasingly worried self.

Her female roommate swallowed down another loaf almost entirely at once and looked at Mikasa innocently.

"Eren said I could have half o–, no ¾ of them!" she defended herself and reached to grab another, before having her hand slapped away.

"No more," Mikasa emphasized by taking the one Sasha had tried to get her hands on, and offering one to Armin.

"Oh, so… hey Mikasa, since those are technically Eren's, do you… something els–" Jean was promptly handed one as well, without any further commenting, "ah… well, since Mikasa technically gave it to me, it's -"

"You should have another Armin," Mikasa suggested, while suddenly pocketing an extra one with one hand for her and Eren, just in case, leaving now only one more roll left on the table, while fending back Sasha with the other arm.

"Oh, um… shouldn't we ask Eren…" Armin said, still holding two yet uneaten rolls. Holding them a little too closely to Sasha. Their number was halved in an instance again, "maybe he wanted to give them to us himself or to someone in particul– huh?! S-Sasha…?"

Armin trembled and started to blush a little, as the brunette girl, and ate the roll whole, swallowing some of his fingers inside as well, which he desperately tried to pull free before Mikasa came to his rescue.

Sasha struggled but eventually released a vice like jaw while Armin still held onto one more remaining roll of bread with Jean's help in pulling her away, all the while lamenting about nobody needing to be afraid on give him any chocolate or the sort just because they're shy in approaching him.

It was nice. Or so they all thought subconsciously, drifting out into proper thoughts from time to time.

Not having to fear the walls being destroyed in the morning.

Not needing to worry that humanity might be extinct tomorrow.

Not bothering to keep their guards up everywhere for the next betrayal.

It was peaceful.

It was better.

Armin. Mikasa. Jean. Sasha. Connie.

They all thought on how they could have a peaceful future.

Along with Eren.

Why couldn't this peace last?

Their minds began turning in various directions but the wish was beginning to spread amongst them.

A way to prolong this peace… one more year… another decade… or a century more…

So long as nothing stood in their way or destroyed the process to it… might peace actually be achieved…

"Mikasa! Where are-?!" A certain Titan shifter strutted in like a flood, thundering into the dining hall and skidding to a halt before them all, looking upon the new tray of crumbs and…

The last remaining cinnamon on the table being reached out towards by a hungry monster, who had now knocked Jean on the floor with a kick of her legs.

Without thinking and acting purely on animalistic instinct, Eren jumped straight towards and onto the table, bringing his hand clapping sharply down before Sasha.

His hand crashed down in time, before she could reach it and the whole room fell silent. The force of Eren's impacting palm on the table after leaping out, had caused a crack to appear across the wooden surface.

"… What are you guys actually doing?" Floch's voice broke the short silence as he looked at the rest of the group from other the table, glad that he wasn't involved with the rowdy bunch that had waken him badly in the morning.

"… E-E-E-Eren, I w-w-was… y-you remember you agreed to give me thr- no I mean half right?" Sasha desperately forced up an excuse once again, feeling a dark feeling in the stomach. Eggs. This all started with eggs. She was never eating eggs again. "S-So, t-this is my s-sixth one, r-right?! Since –"

"Sasha. You've already had seven." Mikasa warned her monotonously, drawling a second cold shiver through the brunette's spine.

The born huntress gulped and shrunk under the table, onto the floor and behind Jean who was still unconscious, cowering behind her newly appointed meat shield. "_...I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. __Eren, I'm really, really, really sorry. __I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry…_"

"Hey, um… Eren…" Armin finally got his attention after hesitating for a long while, never seeing Eren being quite this… jumpy and beast like. "Were you… going to eat that…?"

Eren shivered slightly as he noticed where Armin was pointing. He reluctantly looked down, already having a faint feeling of defeat in the pit of his stomach.

Crushed. The last pastry on the table had just been crushed in beneath his own hand when he leaped onto the table to try and block Sasha's path.

"…" Eren's head turned to Jean and Sasha on the floor, then to Mikasa and Armin, who to his relief held one each.

Hope and relief washed away all his suffering as he got off the partially cracking table that still managed to hold on.

"Hey, um…" Eren looked to Mikasa, noticing hers was already half eaten, before turning to Armin. Both were staring at him as though they didn't recognize him anymore and only gazed at him in concern. "… um, Armin, do you mind if I at least hav–"

"Hey guys! Sorry, I'm late, got held up… aww, you guys started eating without me," in the middle of everything that was going on, Connie pranced in carefreely, not noticing everything that had happened, "oh! Thanks for saving me one Armin!"

"H- No, Connie wait!" Armin's plea and Eren's desperately reaching hand went unnoticed as well through the pleasant hums he often dove into the tunes of.

The bald haired boy, took the cinnamon roll that was being held up and brought it to his mouth, taking a swift bite from it.

Eren felt like strangling himself at his foolishness.

"W-Wait Eren… t-those were for us right?" Sasha asked beginning to get concerned. "I-I could have sworn you said… did you… you did… right…?"

His second last hope, gone for a second time.

"Yes. They were for you guys." Eren said.

* * *

**Late Winter of the Year 851 – ****Noon of Valentines Day ****on the Journey to the Royal Palace**

First the flowers, then the pastry.

Destroyed.

By some miracle, after he had gone back to his flower pot, Eren had managed to salvage something.

The rest of the flowers that he had tried to make into a bouquet had been eaten.

Eren didn't know what it was – though he could at least rule out Sasha this time round unless she also ate wild flowers in her spare time – but he swore to hunt down the animal that had mangled through and vandalized his several weeks worth of toil.

Just like that, the bouquet of flowers and a hidden bag of pastry was all gone, and he was left with a single, underdeveloped flower and a few sweet, tiny breadcrumbs.

Noon had come fast after that and Eren was taken by the guards who didn't even bother saying his name.

It wasn't anything different. Granted Eren had never gotten an actual warrant of arrest but this was just the thing Historia would do to get him to the capital where she would then grab him away and forget everything.

Even if she might be a little annoyed. Probably.

The carriage was spacious despite his technical arrest, with two guards sitting on the opposite seat across from him and Eren having the space for three to himself.

They didn't exchange any words throughout the whole journey, and continued watching him closely and seriously.

They seemed… very forced. Eren considered how fake they seemed to feel but had more troubling thoughts to deal with.

At last in a private space, Eren was able to unfold the second note that had been hidden within the letter while his two guards showed no signs of stopping him.

Historia had told him in the past that she may be able to sneak in hidden messages like that and to make sure he always checked between the two.

His breath hitched as he flipped up the folded parchment he had managed to uncover, setting his eyes on what Historia wrote in plain dark ink.

**Dear Titan Shifty-winkies,**

'… _That's a weird way to start,'_ Eren thought, biting back a smile and realising that Historia had written him a love poem.

Tried to write him a love poem.

The first line itself had been scribbled out, rewritten, and then messed up with various other words pointing into it, several times before being written us above.

**The skies overhead, and the paperwork all around me,**

**I see birds mislead, along with ailing clerks and divering devotees,**

'_At least it rhythms a bit,' he admits, feeling Historia's own hand as she wrote it sneakily in between work._

**Must I really spend six hours staring at this, not knowing what to write?**

**Also rhyming is stupid.**

'_Or not,'_ Eren considered how Historia would spend the long days chewing on the words to write while making sure to not get caught.

**Our relationship is weird, isn't it? **

**Having to send letters beneath cover letters and messing around in secret.**

**I guess this is my first love letter.**

**Struggling to find excuses and chances to dive into empty rooms to talk freely.**

**I'm glad. I think I'm happy to be in this weird situation with you.**

**I want to walk with you hand in hand down the streets one day.**

**But for some reason, I feel like this is just right for us.**

'… _We will someday… I'm sure of it…'_ Eren had made that vow some time ago, on the first day that 'they started'.

But… there was some other part of him saying that they should stay like this for now. Some prophetic instinct that told him revealing everything now would spell disaster for the future.

**I prefer talking face to face with you. **

**It would be great if we could send letters whenever we wanted, but that's not possible either.**

**So you know what day it is right now. **

**I read a book about it and found a few poems about it.**

**But none of them fit us.**

**There's no way that I would be able to say everything I want to and compress it into a few thousand words.**

**So I prefer to talk to you face to face.**

–

**I miss you.**

**I am angry you just left me like that last time. Just like so many times before.**

**I know it is difficult to ask, and I cannot blame you.**

**But,**

**Waking up to see you gone makes me want to rush out and whisper "we'll see each other again soon" back to you just like you did as I slept.**

Eren clenched the paper and tore it sightly, doing his best to bottle down his feelings. He wanted to. But he couldn't for now.

But it didn't change how he too felt unsatisfied when leaving like that/

**So hurry up and come back.**

**And my head still hurts because of you. You touched my body in weird places didn't you? I bet that's why you knocked me out in the first place.**

**I still have to be wear a stupid plaster in the middle of my forehead like a kid.**

'…' Eren turned his eyes inwards, glad that she was okay if she could joke like that. He smiled slightly, feeling the latter begin to end.

**Eren.**

**Don't keep me waiting.**

…

Her last words where followed up by a love heart shape etched in the same black ink that the rest of the letter was. The brunetfondly kept re-reading the letter again and again until the duration of the journey.

They finally arrived at the capitol with traffic instantly building for an hour until they finally came to their destination.

"Off you go then," one of the guards sitting opposite Eren said unexpectedly. The door opened to reveal nobody awaiting him on the outside.

"Go? You mean, you're not escorting me?" the Titan shifter tried to verify. If he was under arrest, then he surely wouldn't just be told

"Oh we're not actual guards," one of them broke into a smile and suddenly slipped off his Military jacket easily.

"…Wait… what?" Eren examined them, and looked at the rifles they were carrying. Fake rifles. Fake badges.

"We got paid to wear these and bring you up here, that really is it," one of them explained and suddenly waved him out again. "Later buddy, you're not actually a criminal are you?"

"… Oh…" Eren said and cocked his head at the odd spectacle. Was he technically still arrested? He should ask the receptionist to make sure that he wasn't currently an enemy of the state.

* * *

**Late Winter of the Year 851 – Royal Palace Gardens**

"Khuh- Oh m-my…" The Queen's dying fits of laughter gave life to the hall building as she dug her face in her arm lapped across the table and laughed in the face of the pouting Titan shifter. "I-I c-can't… heheheh…"

"If you keep snorting like that, I'm sure the whole country will hear," Eren shot a unserious yet annoyed response. He received an expected jab in the ribs for the comment. Historia always ate desserts with utmost elegance at all times. Aside from sometimes.

"I-I can't believe you…" Historia coughed from next to him. They were sitting out in the empty courtyard after Eren had wandered around asking for where the prison was.

"So…" Historia tried again only to end up giggling again, "you came in saying you're here to turn yourself in, so they send you right into the front office and they just tell you…'I-It's through the courtyard and then on your left'…"

After a lot of weird looks and uncertain employees trying to help him, Eren was told to stop being a bother and to go commit a crime if he wanted to be arrested that badly.

"E-Eren… you know that warrant I sent was an outdated version silly," she tried to stiffle her giggles once again with limited success. Flopping down her arms on the outdoors table which were used to dine during the summer. "You seriously thought t-they actually send people than _can_ arrest _you_ to begin with…? Heeh, do you really think I would arrest you for hurting my head a little?"

It was still very cold outside yet Historia wanted to walk around the gardens with Eren and point out some things she had changed and started growing.

"… I knew that… I was just playing dumb for the sake of your idea…" Eren mumbled under his breath from beside the blonde, refusing to look at her and finding the unmelten snow far more interesting. "Stop with that fake laughing already, I bet you were staring out the window and watching everything happen"

"…" Historia went quiet.

Eren glowered at her biting her lip and smiling awkwardly. Suddenly no longer doing her fake annoying laugh, created for the sole purpose of annoying him in Krista fashion.

"Hey Historia," Eren grew the devil's smirk, finally getting his hands on his real trump card, "how about I speak with the newspaper agents and go public with that excellently written love letter from the Queen herself."

That froze her instantly, and the tables were turned at once. Historia felt icy inside, feeling actually that Eren was serious.

"Give it," she ordered at once, playing down his bluff with her own poker face. She leaned off the bench they were sharing in the private garden and tried climbing over him to reach for it.

"Oh come on, it wasn't that bad. I like the part about you thinking of your body be-" he tried to persist a little more, finding the murderous look she was giving him quite cute. He held the love letter out of her arms reach and smiled her down.

"Give. It." The Queen repeated, unbending to her defeat.

She seemed to plead of embarrassment despite seeing this herself as a bit of justice going her way, she refused it, not yielding to her challenging soldier.

"Fine," Eren swiftly leaned down to peck her on her cheek before handing it to her. Historia's face steamed a little from the surprise attack before she pecked him right back, "and no more jokes like that, the commander got me worried enough that you were actually mad at me."

"Of course I wasn't bad at you," she cooed at him. Saddened certainly but she was the one peeping on Eren in the bathroom to no avail. "But what about -"

"No," Eren shot down any further attempts she might make. He was not falling for any more fake penalties Historia had no doubt been steaming away at.

".. But if -" Historia really wanted for Eren to carry out one particular idea she had in mind.

"I'll go public with this if I have to," he teased again but she saw the traces of seriousness that he had.

"Yes alright, sorry… I may have got carried away… it would be funny though if I could just train you to do… some certain things," standing up from his lap, she winked cheekily at him, keeping her idea safe for a different occasion. "Anyway, we're both getting cold, let's go inside."

Erenn stood up and followed after her. Her gardens were massive and practically a field to herself that was right now overfilled with stubborn snow clinging onto the evergreen bushes and trees dotted around and in patterns.

They were clearly kept in good condition by some employee every year. Historia had shown him all around and told him of the different colours of plants she hoped to grow this year, the fields where she hoped to host festivals and the routes for them to sneak around unnoticed.

They entered the building once more, feeling a soothing warm air exiting from within the various room with the continuous lit stoves.

They walked side by side, fingers threaded with each other when they passed through the empty halls and quickly released before turning a corner or hearing the tapping of footsteps.

They arrived at her room once more, Historia easily dismissing the guards as usual. Things had changed quickly ever since 2 months ago.

Eren was fundamentally also employed as the Queen's personal bodyguard whenever he was at the capitol. It was well known how the two were part of the same training corps and served in the same Survey Corps division for a while.

Of course, what they didn't know, was just how different the relationship between Eren and Krista was, but there was justification enough in entrusting the security of the Queen to the Titan shifter.

The Titan Slayer. The Saviour of the Walls. The Hope of Humanity.

Eren had become a national hero by now, and the response was very favourable to have the people's hero working along side their Queen.

Titles given to them that they would never name themselves as.

"Well... take a seat," Historia woke him up before Eren once more began to think just how little the people knew behind his true nature. Behind the nature of the Queen's installment as well.

But they weren't 'Hero' and 'Queen' now.

They were Eren and Historia.

Eren walked over through the door and closed it behind him, locking it securely. There had been a few close cases of messengers rushing in on urgent business an almost finding them in between tender kisses and fierce embraces.

Meanwhile, Historia had marched over to the still blazing fire in her room and dramatically threw the love letter in, humming contently before watching it turn into cinders.

She was not writing something like that ever again. Eren may have been touched by it, but she recoiled at the experience in having to constantly tuck it in and out from amidst her paperwork during the day.

"H-Hey, close your eyes for a minute," Eren requested as he turned to face her with his back. Historia looked startled for a moment, after flicking her head and walking a few paces towards him, but nodded and shut her eyes firmly. "You can open them when I click my fingers."

"Alright then, I have something to give you as well afterwards," she hinted, already knowing that it was no doubt a gift that Eren had prepared for her.

Her pulse begin to increase dramatically as it did each time.

A gift for Historia.

Every time she received a present, it seemed to fill her up full with feeling.

Being given something from someone else still felt so alien to her.

But she wanted it.

She wanted even if it was just one or two more things, Historia wanted Eren to give her just a few more gifts.

She craved that feeling of the once unneeded girl being given something from the unneeded boy.

She needed it.

Pulling out the hidden object in his pocket, Eren placed the delicate creation in his mouth before carefully turning around and forcing a pose.

Eren snapped his fingers and Historia looked up at him. What did she expect?

A box of chocolates perhaps to make her body flutter over him? Did Eren even know how to make chocolate?

A necklace that he would place so delicately around that she wouldn't even notice? Somehow she doubted that when he already gave her some piece of jewelry though.

Unless…

'… _No way… he c-couldn't…' _her heart rushed from a pleasantly fast pace to positively exploding all of a sudden. Taking her hand gently and slipping a cool circular metal around her finger. _'No way. It's.. t-too early for that, way too early… No… No way.'_

A couple months in and already proposing something like marriage to her? For some reason Historia couldn't get it past her. So…

She slowly opened her eyes, trembling with uncertainty.

"…" Historia looked at Eren. Very carefully. "…"

Truly.

"…"

Utterly.

"…"

Befuddled.

"…" Historia's eyebrows began quivering as she pulled her jaw into an awkward smile, leaning her head to the side. "… The hospital is only a few minutes away Eren, we can go there now and –"

"I'm a'soultely 'ine mi'lady," Eren uncharacteristically run a hand through his hair and waved his hand, as if he was some narcissistic noble, obsessed with their apparent beauty. "May I not 'ave the p'easure of thy dance?"

Crunch. Eren took a bite from what he was holding in between his teeth.

A bluish purple flower, the stem of which was tightly gritted and shortened slightly by a little bite.

Just as Eren slowly kept gnawing at it, and eating up the green end out of nervousness, looking as if he truly had gone insane.

"W… Wh… at… are you doing…" Historia deadpanned at him. What was he even doing? Holding a flower in his mouth and trying to appear charming?

She lowered her head a little, hiding her face from him as her shoulders began to shake. Unable to keep it in, her badly tuned and hysterical laughter filled the room as she looked at her grinning lover, now holding a goofy grin and still… eating the stem of the bluish purple flower almost to the halfway point.

She remembered it again. A certain story from her childhood days spent alone.

The prince that would come to whisk her away on his noble stead, riding off into the palace together.

Reality was different from fiction.

But it wasn't completely off either.

* * *

**An Hour Later**

"Ugh, my mouth really tastes bad…" Eren complained, scratching at his tongue and at the grassy feel lingering in it.

"You're the dumbass who lost it and started eating a flower just to amuse me," Historia reminded him, rolling her eyes as she sighed in disbelief at him. "…So you were spending so much time growing them to make a bouquet for me but this morning some animal ate and ate them all."

Eren had been desperately holding the half crunched flower shoot in his mouth as he kept desperately flapping his hand her way and trying to ask for a dance.

She was not dancing ever again either after the incident 2 months back, even if she could actually manage Eren's silliness.

It wasn't charming at all. Not one bit.

"Yeah…that about sums it up. Sorry, I was careless and your gift got ruined…" Eren confirmed, still very upset. He had managed to find about three or four remaining flowers but they weren't enough for a posy, so Eren took the best remaining one.

Historia smiled and shook her head. Eren would act ridiculous for her sake sometimes but it was far better than him skulking around in the corner behind everyone else when they came as a group on official business.

"… One flower is all I need…" she whispered just enough for Eren to hear. He blinked and looked across the room to her desk, only spotting it now after Historia gestured her head over to it.

The flowers petal which had remained along with a tiny amount of the shoot left, hand been places into a tiny vessel in which it was hanging out of.

"Historia, you don't have to keep it a… at…" Eren trailed off. She really didn't need. There would be a next time and he would get make sure to grow enough flowers for a bouquet.

The flower wasn't going to last long, he didn't know how long but it's obvious that flowers will only stay fresh even when kept in the correct conditions after plucking for a short while.

But Historia was of course going to keep it anyway. Until the water run out. Until the insides wilted. Until the petals fell.

Eren was short on time. And Historia was going to treasure it until the end.

"Hey, it's your turn to close your eyes now," she changed the subject, standing up again and wandering to the corner of the room. She pulled open a drawer and looked back over her shoulder to stare impatiently at Eren.

"Fine…" Eren sighed, the words on his lips forgotten and gone. He closed his eyes surely and turned around. "Am I going to open my eyes to you eating a chandelier or something this time?"

"Is that what they do on the streets nowadays, or is this what they do on the other side of the ocean?" Historia smiled and closed the drawer, opening the box ready, "or is this just a new tradition you want to come up when someone wants to for a kiss?"

Eren heard the soft bouncing of the bed and rustling of foil, realising Historia had sat down and was preparing something. "Something like that last one… just without me eating the flower part. It still tastes bad in my mouth"

"Well as it happens, I am a most generous Queen to a most particular soldier, who I don't mind helping out with that," Historia teased. "Count to five, then open your eyes."

"That most particular soldier is most happy to accept your Majesty's aid," Eren shrugged and did so, giving time to prepare herself mentally. When he opened his eyes, he half expected Historia to be standing before him, only to turn round and see her calmly resting on the bed, and…

In her mouth, Historia was holding an extremely thin circular bread roll. Eren had to quirk his eyebrow and approach her a little before figuring out what she was doing as she flicked it towards him as though it was a cigarette.

Eren rubbed the back of his head and grinned awkwardly when he saw the impatient look she had.

She flicked the bread roll again towards him, from where she sat on the end of her bed, asking when they have once asked before kissing.

Eren sighed and walked forward, gently sitting down next to her on the right, before turning sidewards to her, almost getting whacked in the face by the bread roll, no more than a couple centimeters in diameter.

It looked fragile, and easily breakable despite how well it seemed to be sticking together, most likely packed with a fair amount of sugar.

"C-Come on 'en," she angled it towards his mouth, telling him to start eating.

One bite on her side and then one on his.

The two of them would slowly proceed along the two sides of the same role until the inevitable ending in the middle.

Neither Eren and Historia probably wouldn't have picked up on the meaning behind the idea of sharing such a confectionery in the past.

But they weren't so clueless anymore. After focusing on each other so much, they seemed to pick up a lot more from observing people around them and getting the idea between each other quickly.

Eren assumed that Historia had seen it being done somewhere within the capitol city and had bought some of this particular pastries for the two of them to try.

'_She knew I'd fail at baking didn't she…' _Eren considered. Not that it would make much difference as Historia still probably would have wanted to try this out, but he still had wanted to complete hand-made pastry for her. _'Next time… I'll do it next time.'_

Eren took a bite down. And tasted cream. He had only had it on a few rare occasions back from his mother but the strange blend of taste seemed very different from back then.

It felt thick and rather cold on the inside, while retaining the gentle dough like flavour of the pastry around it, neither crumbling nor tearing.

Heat was swimming across his face, as if from one cheek to the other in a soft and soothing motion. He felt his heart rate beat at twice the rate it was moments before, looking forward into the crystal blue eyes of Historia.

"Mn, don't 'et it dwop, 'kay?" she half mumbled, flustered and with a clear red complexion mirroring his, likewise swishing through her gentle cheeks.

Eren barely nodded, taken in at how beautiful she looked, her soft doe eyes embarrassed yet daring and as unbending as always.

Historia took a bite forward along the cream roll, sinking her pearl teeth through the bread and eating some of the cream inside, before carefully balancing her end in her mouth again, as she sheepishly looked up to him and urged him to take another bite.

He did, similarly being carefully as he felt a few bits of the crust flake off and fall to the ground.

Only then did he realize it. Just how close they were. The roll was fairly long at the start, big enough for the two to enjoy eating slowly even between themselves.

Yet their noses were already almost touching. Just after two bites, they had both jumped across the distance and there was barely a couple inches left.

Bells were ringing nonstop, chiming into the silent tune, and the allure of ocean and sky met with earth and woods.

Eren mumbled into the roll, the vibrations easily being picked up by Historia's tender lips, who quickly averted her eyes in embarrassment before turning them back to his with soft delight.

There were only 5 centimetres left between their lips.

Sweat creased across his brow as Eren took another small bite, nimbly tasting more.

4 centimetres left.

They could feel the soft crumbling and crunching of the other and the soft breathing through their noses, both buzzing in anticipation as Historia took another nibble towards Eren.

3 centimetres left.

Savouring the gentle, sweet, milky cream, Eren seemed to recall a memory from after his time as he crept another way towards Historia's face. He couldn't make sense of when it was but he recalled something akin to this being called the 'Pocky game'.

2 centimetres.

Their noses bumped and tickled each other softly. They both mumbled apologies through their closed mouths.

Their lips were practically touching. Their faces tilted to the side as the both felt the circular pastry cracking between them both.

Historia leaned forward and almost closed the distance before them, taking a slightly larger snack off.

There was less than a centimetre now.

The air gently tickled both of them, sensing the other's desire in the air from their blush filled face off. Their lips trembled, burning for union.

The last step and the endgame was obvious.

Eren was about to open his mouth once more, balancing the end on his lower teeth before advancing to the finishing goal. But before that –

"Hum?" Eren stopped and looked startled, noticing something was missing. Historia tried grinning cheekily at him, as she sucked through the straw. And taking the sugary cream with her.

He scowled, left with only the bread crust, and… he had something to compensate for sweetness.

"Eup?!" The Queen's mouth was sealed by the much rougher lips, pushing her down softly onto her back.

She fell onto her bed, just as Eren's arms crossed above her shoulders, securing her escape. Their lips still entwined by the sudden kiss, both racing to take the initiative and smouch away at all the sugary sweetness that remained.

It wasn't long before they started moving their lips together in harmony. Their lips, always so soft and gentle to each other, blood heartily streaming beneath the ruby gemed flesh.

Eren always seemed to taste the wheat from Historia's constant snacking, along with many various richer foods that he himself had tasted on occasion when Historia was able to. Sometimes hers also felt almost flowery, like soft petals of flowers departing off with the zephyrs.

Historia on the other side would always be a little concerned at how dry his felt sometimes. And on other days she could taste the common broth he would have eaten. They were just like every bit of the tender strength he always displayed around her. An armour of feathers.

Today, there was only an exhilarating flood of sweetness plastered between the two, passed back and forth from the rocking collisions of two lovers.

"Mn, Eren…" Historia parted her lips for a second, sighing seductively from the fierce contact. Her head was dizzy. And she loved it. "Aren't you bold today."

"Sorry your Majesty," Eren smiled, nipping her lips once more quickly, "are you going tell me you weren't aiming for this."

"Getting pinned down a ruffian?" One hand felt its what through his dark hair while the other caressed his neck, bringing her Titan shifter closer. "I assure you my standards aren't nearly that lax."

He kissed her once more, pressing his body gently on hers, moving his hands through the golden curls sprayed across the bed.

"So not an ordinary ruffian?" Eren's voice grew heavy, speaking practically at her own lips. "He must be a very… special person then…"

Historia softly breathed out and brought his face down a bit lower, pushing him down into her neck and moving one hand down his body.

She hugged him in that difficult position, and shuffled up further onto the bed, bringing her only along.

"Yes he is," she re-arranged his curls downwards, smoothing them out after twirling them in between her fingers, "he's a very special person to me who has such qualities that he refuses to see. How troublesome."

Eren continued breathing again, leaning himself up and over his Queen again. "Is he a bother when he comes to see you?"

"It would be for more bothersome if he didn't come and stubbornly hauled his thoughts silently to himself," her back arched upwards and she kissed him herself.

Sometimes she considered it. Finding out whatever it was Eren was keeping hidden from everyone else. If she wanted to, she could open up to the electric feeling that buzzed and caused her whole body to shiver and desire to see his memories.

Historia had no guarantee that she would find out, but there was no certainty with anything given their circumstances of the Founding Titan for the first time in the two millennia.

But she decided not. Resisting against the lightning fast images burning into her head again, she chose to sink Eren into her once more and drown with his trust.

They were always tender, even as they kissed more fiercely than in the past, the tender affection refused to part ways from them.

The continued for a while until Eren finally broke off for a breather, and started fiddling through the jacket he left on the chair.

"Hey, um… I… tried making you some pastries as well…" Eren blinked and decided to bring it out. A bag that he had stuffed along with the remaining flower. "… They didn't come out so well and… circumstances… arose that… lead to… this."

He had gone back to the pantry in defeat for his kitchen duty right after the whole fiasco, and decided to collect the crumbs of mixed sugary dough and some thin tastes of cinnamon still lingering.

Pointless, futile effort to scrape up the remains. That was why Eren did it.

"Circumstances involving -" Historia began scratching her finger to her chin and visualizing a certain brunette.

"Yeah, you guessed it," Eren cut her off. "I was going to give everyone else extras and bring the best ones for you. But it didn't turn out so well…"

His other half looked at him curiously before nodding and unpeel the bag open that Eren was holding out to her in his hands.

"It's… pretty small… oh," she commented, as she finally saw all that was left. A few breadcrumbs. Eren's inward exasperation showed but he made no further excuses, moving to retract the remains away.

Historia stopped him, carefully lifting her hand and picking up one of the larger sized crumbs. Eren watched her curiously as she took it in between two of her fingers and placed it in her mouth, savouring the taste.

"Hmm…" the Queen scratched her cheek, "it seems really sweet, but also kind of chewy. A little bit too hard on the inside, a bit sticky on the outside. There's also something strange that I don't know. The cinnamon feels out of-"

"Y-Yeah…" Eren unfortunately wasn't a master chef who knew how to tweak the necessary components next time like the back of his hand.

Eren slowly took a piece himself, and sampled it. His whole body shuddered as he tried to bite down. His complaints caught up to Historia quickly and he felt everything she was talking about.

"And," Historia added, licking her fingers and smiling at him, "… and I don't even feel like saying it."

Full of messy, troublesome and ingrained feelings.

Just like everything seemed to be him from him.

"… Oh, by the way, if they came out right," Eren brushed the praise aside. It was awful and nothing was changing his mind. "… you know how cinnamon rolls are shaped? W-Would you start eating towards the centre first, or eat around it?!"

Historia stared at Eren in confusion at the abnormal anticipation. He seemed to be very interested in finding out.

"I-I don't know…" she said after a while, scratching her hair and stuttering. How was she supposed to answer that when she never ate something like that and only pointed it out to him on the stores they visited in the capitol. "What does it even matter?!"

"I just need to know these sort of things!" the Titan shifter insisted, "f-for future reference!"

"Like for what?!" The Queen panicked. What could possibly involve wondering whether to dive right into the centre and deepest point or start snaking all around slowly before going in?

"L-Like if you want to… to…" He desperately pried away dirty memories and think of something. "L-Like… never mind."

They went quiet for a while before softly chuckling to themselves.

Before Historia sent her naughty Eren a dangerous giggle right afterwards.

"Anyway…" Eren finally grasped on the final thing he had brought, "this is what I really wanted to give you."

"Oh, I-I do too!" Historia shot up off the bed and started rushing around her room, searching for something. She paused through scrambling inside a drawer before turning around to Eren again. "Let's show each other at the same time alright?"

* * *

Eren nodded at her once more. The internal countdown from three started simultaneously and they opened their eyes right after holding their gifts out in the middle of the room.

" – Ah…" Their breaths came as one, both set on what their other was holding out.

A key.

A book.

Remaining fragments of a past childhood that had lost their value.

– "It's…" Both spoke and stopped at the same time. It wasn't the same ones of course.

"A… key?" Eren wondered first, observing the hard metal chiseled design, that went into a love heart shape at the end connected by taunt string.

Eren glanced back to her chest where Historia lifted up the familiar metal from beneath her breast by tugging upwards slightly on the string.

There were two objects hung by two separate loops of thread around her neck. Both of them from Eren.

"I… just thought…" she twirled her fingers around it, She looked once more at the cover of the book he was holding out to her.

"It's perfect," Eren said. He took one hand and caught the string around it. As soon as Historia let it go, he noticed how light it was.

"Yours is perfect," she countered, acceoting the book from his him.

The title was '_Historie_'. The same name of the book she had ta the child. Yet this book was completely different besides that.

The one she had received so long ago by her half-sister had not been printed anywhere else.

The book must have been held amongst others by the Royal family which had gradually decreased over the years in the private library just outside the palace.

This book was different. She opened it onto the first page and read its contents. Past the introduction and the prologue that made her heart skip whole beats out.

**Chapter 1 : My Soulmate**

The ink was undoubtedly hand written.

**Chapter 2 : Our First Meeting**

Just as the cover and the binding was done by hand and carefully procured designing.

**Chapter 3 : The Krista Girl Who I Never Liked**

The chapters continued on and on.

"When could you have gotten the time…" she tried to clock it in. The dark circles under his eyes and the added tiredness from lack of sleep.

"It's not finished of course… I'm only getting to the part about your birthday, and maybe…" Eren explained, "… I thought you could do that chapter."

Historia closed it and looked at the cover again. Just as a minute ago, it still read _'Historie'_.

Beneath it however, there was a smaller title.

'_**Historie - unserer Liebe'**_

It read altogether.

Of course it wasn't finished.

But it was already perfect for them both.

"Of course I will," Historia hugged the book at her chest, and let a few stars of happiness shine from her eyelids, "we'll write it together until the last chapter…"

Eren nodded, promising that they would. A basic diary for them both. An album with no photos.

But it would remain in the hands of only one of them before the end.

"By the way… this key…" he pondered for a moment, before turning over to a particular window in Historia's room.

"Yep!" Confirming his conclusion, she cuddled the book to her chest even more closely.

The key to the window to which he was beginning a trend of entering through.

A key to the window of the Queen's bedchamber.

If word got out, there would be no end to the amount of stories being weaved about the soldier sneaking into his ruler's lodgings.

It's not like he was going to let that happen, but it was the feeling of how much value a key like that held.

A key to his lover's room.

Why did it feel worlds lighter than his old one?

Eren kissed her again.

Unable to hold back anymore, Historia quickly accepted him onto her and slowly pushed him backwards until his legs hits the back of the bed again.

They refused to part even as she pushed her Titan's strong body deeper into the bed. Eren pulled his Queen in, letting her soft stomach lay on his own, never breaking the hard pressing contact between them.

One of his arms snaking its way around her waist, the other lost in her silky hair while Historia held his head in both hands and cupped his cheek, furiously sucking between their lips.

The exchange was so passionate yet soothing to comprehend.

Silently prying that no sudden appearance of memories would get in the way, they deepened the kiss as far as they could, lips burning wet from the intense pressure.

Warmth of sunset and sunrise, dawn and dusk, expressed itself in the feeling that was both freshly awakening and contently enticing.

Historia's breath traveled outwards, and tickled his lips as they briefly parted to gain more breath, before locking lips once more, this time a bit more gently.

He could still feel the sweet remains of cream and the taste the remaining crust crumbs on her lips which he gently sucked clean.

Historia's hand began traveling down below his waist and at the brim of his trousers, teasing his belt a little, before slipping in beneath his shirt and traveling upwards.

Softly and gently, her delicate skim was making him lose his mind. Eren rotated his body, squirming through the sheets once more as he allowed Historia to get a better position.

He gasped into her kiss when her hand finally arrived over his core, gripping gently the spot just to the left of his chest.

Eren had no qualms about whatever her hand was doing. Why should he when it belonged to her already.

He opened his eyes that he hadn't even realised he had closed, and barely a second after him, he saw Historia open hers and stare brilliantly into each other.

They kissed for a little longer, maintaining eye contact that displayed their thoughts clear as day with mists of lust telling them to go a step further today as they broke apart in steady, excited breaths.

"Eren…" she called, wobbling her jaw, as she longed for it. For more. For it all. For everything of his.

He leaned up and kissed her neckline, her body jolting in delight at the touch. Her skin was sucked gently and released, holding her heart shaped face in his hands while she rested her arms in a cross on top of him.

"Historia…" Eren moaned. His mouth apart, he brought Historia down onto him again. Their lips touched and he guided his tongue upwards, prodding at her lips.

She opened her mouth for him this time, allowing his tongue to enter. Unexplored territory where nobody else had ever been before.

Their tongues felt almost ready to explode when they touched. Soft, wet, hot, delicate flesh touched and licked the surfaces, rubbing the two sensitive and strange muscles together.

So many tastes of thrill and other worldliness violated the unidentifiable flavour. If they could describe what it tasted like, they could only say like something that connected the world from the sun to the sky and to the woods.

The flavours of the world lied up, Eren and Historia bathed in each other's soft caressing and the amalgamation of their bodies.

Unable to get enough, some moisture begin to collect from both of their mouths around their joint tongues working violently, trying to wet and make them watery so that they may force them to separate.

It indeed became harder to keep swirling and staying connected by their tongues but the impulses generated from it became even more sensual.

Historia's legs, shuddered, losing all strength in her knees, she completely fell to lay on top of him, legs lost in a mess together, and the spot between her legs resting on his hard belly.

At last, their tongues slipped out of contact and instead began swiftly and hungrily devouring and exploring all the other components of the other's mouth.

Eren's hot, wet tongue searched for Historia's own, roaming through the delicious tastes, sweeping out every bit of the liquid he could taste from her and collecting it from all over her mouth.

Sensations of pure bliss wriggled up and down their spines, making them shiver in pleasure just as Historia did the same, gliding through his mouth, his saliva started lubricating her every motion as she nicked the perfectly healthy teeth he had.

Around and around, their tongues stole away and mixed burning waters that foamed in their mouths, responding to their desires.

Her tongue lightly rubbed his on the way out, trying to not clog up his entire mouth cavern, but was pulled and sucked right back in.

Escape was impossible. They didn't even want to escape.

Staying merged like that for eternity didn't seem bad at all.

However their breaths became irregular, no longer capable of just breathing through their noses in the intoxicating smell of heat and desire, their mouths parted at last, tongues retreating back out and panting desperately.

Drool connected their lips in uncountable amount of lines, sticking from the sides of their mouths and still bridged by a great thick rope of saliva that had been fusing together between their mouths.

It rolled down their chins and slid downwards onto Eren's clothes, and slapped across Eren's throat. Throbbing through them both, curiosity took over as both wondered how so much hot liquid they had actually managed to accumulate and mix together.

Historia leaned down desiring more and licked the remaining trails of liquid back up and into her throat again, shivering in delight at the result of their mixed spittle.

"So…?" Eren mustered enough focus to ask her innocently while watching his lover tongue and swish their combined drool around her tongue, letting him watch up. "Have I been brushing my teeth well?"

Her tongue halted its relishing at the indescribably hot mess of enticing liquor and stared at him disbelievingly.

"…" Historia deadpanned, at him and brought her mouth to his entrance prodding her tongue out to open his mouth. As soon as he did, she let the remaining slobber she had managed to suck back up, fall into his mouth before she could speak again. "… Yes… you've been a good… boy…"

Eren kept his mouth open as Historia stared down in fascination, watching tongue savour her collected mixture seductively, rolling it around his mouth before it sunk between the gaps of his teeth and was spread in luscious amounts everywhere in the mouth of her lover.

And they began making out once again.

Their grips on the others body slackened and moved widely without thought of reason beyond the desire to touch.

Their concentrations stolen by the focus off their tongues meeting in the centre and pushing back against each other, trying to gain dominance and enter their opposition's cave again.

Racing and pounding without pause, their hearts beat a tune equally for them both, causing tremors through their bodies.

He invaded her mouth once more, searching for his prize. He slide through the hot cavern everywhere looking for it, but couldn't find it.

He then realised it was already roaming through his own mouth, submerging his mouth with hot sticky saliva and marking his teeth all around with it.

She grinded herself a little along his waist, almost unnoticeably as their hands became lost somewhere far away.

Their heated exchange continued, their tongues fighting for dominance.

Their surroundings, the time, the place and all the world melted away from the heat, leaving only the two of them separated by only a few thin layers of clothes.

Nothing else mattered except the other to the other, completing an unending circle.

Breathing through their noses, their tongues wrestled in an unending battle.

Thrills of pleasure came in floods and explosions, absorbing everything into one. They wanted to play with each other even more. Lightly biting their lips that curled inwards once more from their almost unbroken harmony.

They had been playing with their tongues and had gained a solid feel of their explored caverns for a while now. Now, Historia gently added soft pressure onto Eren's tongue, giving him the next idea to move onto adding pressure to their movements.

A–

–

– "**AA****AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA****IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII****IIIIIEE****EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE****EEEEEEEEEEEEEE!**"

Unintentionally, Eren accidentally bit Historia's little tongue a bit too deeply, clamping his teeth down hard.

* * *

They sat together in silence, a big distance placed between them.

Every time Eren tried to shuffle down the bed and close the gap, Historia would shuffle away from him a little more.

"I'm really, real–"

"I know, you don't need to tell me once, let alone this many times…" Historia mumbled, not hiding her irritation.

They sat in silence once again.

"I'm –"

"**I. Know.**" Historia punched both words in hard. To no avail.

"Maybe I can kiss it better for y–"

"**No. No more kisses.**" His response only made her mood worse.

"Wh– for real?!" He shot up in betrayal. His head began to swim in panic. "Y-You don't mean ever again, right?"

"No, that's precisely what I mean," the Queen reassured, "No more kisses ever again."

"B-But, Historia…?!" Eren pleaded.

One wrong move and he had been banished from the farthest heaven and cornered completely.

"**No. More. Kisses. Ever.**"

"But-!"

"Oh by the way, I haven't forgiven you from last time," her eyes seemed to glow in reminder, giving her the perfect opportunity to change the topic.

That had been an accident. And so was this. The ruler decided something needed to be done to prevent anymore accidents.

"W-Wait," Eren shrunk back against the wall as Historia approached with **it**. "P-Please, a-anything but that… H- IIIIIIIIII!"

"**Your punishment.**" Historia held in her hand, the most feared instrument known to the Founding Titan.

A feather.

Torture to death by tickling.

* * *

**Late Winter of the Year 851 **

"Hmm hum hmm," Historia hummed gently, writing down in the book Eren had just gifted her.

She sat by the table at a spot where the light of dusk filtered through and gave her a nostalgic feeling, and from a point where she could keep an eye on her currently passed out Eren.

He hadn't moved after crying through the muffler for mercy at her relentless barrage. She turned down and continued to write in the book.

It was more a present for both of them. But it would be her who would surely outlive him, and be the one to hold onto it forever.

Or so that was the idea.

She had already resolved herself to the contrary.

But in the last moments of the near future, Historia wondered what she would think as the two of them would read through it one last time.

Perhaps she would curse herself and her stupidity, or maybe she would be glad she had picked the pen up dipped it in ink once more without getting caught in the sticky webs.

But she was certain that she would treasure it. Whatever they wrote in here, they could keep track of themselves.

Their memories.

Not the memories of the past, not the memories of other people, not the memories of someone else.

Their own memories.

The young blonde Queen looked out of the window and to the sky. Then back to her lover still unconscious.

Pushing the chair out and wandering by his side, she smiled down and brushed his dark brown locks.

She could hear his breathing, see the gentle movements of his chest and feel his heartbeat.

Eren was alive.

That's all she needed for now.

He would have to leave soon. Again.

And she would go back to the papers and the documents the next day, then sneaking off through the ancient library and searching everywhere for a hope.

She hadn't given up hope yet.

She would find it.

She would discover a way to save him.

Historia swore that upon her life.

But for now, she wanted to spend the time with him.

She returned back to the table for a brief moment and finished writing down the latest entry of their story, before returning to his side.

Laying parallel to him, she nuzzled herself into his chest, not caring who might walk into them, as she let herself nap just for a little moment.

Winter was coming to an end.

The snow was preparing to melt.

And the last flowers of the dying age were beginning to blossom.

* * *

**And that's Eren and Historia's first Valentine's Day! Or my month and a half late version of it of course! Hope y'all… enjoyed?**

**This would have hopefully been in line with where I am at in my main fic but yeah… that ain't happening at all lol, but alas!**

* * *

"Hey, Mikasa," the dejected Jean tried calling to her once more, "I was wondering if you have some time later to maybe… like g-"

"Stop eating the ingredients Sasha!" Mikasa slammed her hand down onto the table and shook the whole room.

Going into a fright, the huntress teleported into the farthest corner away from the Ackerman and tried to hide in it without making a complaint.

Mikasa then returned back to her work, besides Armin who was also helping out with an ever growing amount of sweat on him.

They thought Eren's baking was standard. They thought they could make it up and make something even better for him.

The kitchen was literally on fire in some places, and Connie was rushing around with buckets of water, after he had mistakenly thrown a bucket of alcohol on the small flame that had broken out.

"H-Hey, Mikasa, could you… just for a moment?" Jean pleaded once more until Mikasa finally turned around to face him expressionlessly and waited for him without saying anything.

"S-So, I was just wondering if you might like to… to g-go outt with me t-tonig-?" Resolving up his courage, Jean spoke from his heart.

He had thought about it for a while. His feelings for everyone and for her as well. It may have been just by that flowing hair that he had been caught in that trap, but that wasn't the case anymore.

The problem was –

"Jean, please save me!" Squeaking in fright like a corned animal, she jumped right behind Jean for cover, placing him in front of her and Mikasa.

Jean panickedly shook the pleading girl off him desperately, who looked at him betrayed. Mikasa was approaching.

And then half of the room exploded into flames again.

In his panic and fading consciousness from the heat, Armin had accidentally cut himself. He had thankfully suppressed his will, however in the midst of the sacks of flour all around him, a tiny spark had resulted.

Mikasa managed to get him out of the way in time but the kitchen was ¾ ash and cinders by the time Jean gave up completely and consoled Armin.

There was always next year.

Assuming they lived to see it.


	2. Fragment 2 - Historia's Birthday

**Summary: It's almost the 15th of January, and Eren only learns that its Historia's birthday… 13 hours before the day itself. Eren and Historia have been in a secret relationship between both the military government and their comrades backs as neither wish to be involved with politics nor deal with Mikasa's reaction and their comrades teasing. …Eren tries his best…?**

**Note on Spoilers: No explicit manga spoilers in this chapter, although there will be some hinting at a few, details are not revealed so spoiler free in essence since it would only maybe affect your opinions on the basement reveal perhaps? - Unlikely even that but just so you don't say that I didn't warn you! Very minor hinting in essence despite the heaps they learnt, nothing here is revealed, same as previous chapter.**

**This would also happen within chapter 14 of the main fic once it reaches there. Also same as before, main reason this is here and not in the main story (aside from extra chapter length) is because you shouldn't necessarily take it 100% seriously in the latter half, but it's all meant to be seen as occurring in reality. It's sort of the bad/silly stunt people pull in real life and even in AoT like Potato x Sasha x Meat just bigger in a way, so yeah don't take it as necessarily a good fit for AoT's tone since Eren using his Titan power for silly things is like someone walking round with a rocket launcher down the streets and messing around with it – it's the line of reality that this fic sort of crosses and I think it's best I shut up now cause you get the point!**

**Also… 3 months late! Welp… what can I say for myself here lol? It was my waifu's birthday yesterday (obviously not from this series lol) so from one waifu to another… something like that? She's mai duaghter-in-law by internet logic, so… something like that? I will hopefully have Eren's out soon as well but yeah, after that I've got more AU-AU stuff planned and many will be more drama orientated instead of light-hearted like the first 3 bits but yeah!**

**Also just to confuse you, Fragment 2 occurs before Fragment 1 in timeline order… why didn't I publish this one first? Go figure, I honestly was just struggling for so long with the ending here lol, but Eren's birthday fic got me thinking a bit more so yeah.**

****Guest/unPMable **Reviews: **

**Guest (1) : Baka, I ship them more lol, just kidding haha (actually I'm probably not haha), but anyways that chapter comes later, but yeah.**

**Guest (2) : Glad you enjoyed it, and here's one for you lol, but yeah, some won't be oneshots here and might have a few parts but yeah.**

"speech"

_'thoughts'_

* * *

**Fragment 2 - 'Herzlichen Glückwunsch zum Geburtstag, Historia!'**

**Mid Winter of the Year 851 – 13 Hours Before Historia's Birthday**

Another passing hour within the brumal cold within the air was signalled by the old clock in the hallroom clicking audibly. The last hour of the late morning, not much more than another 59 minutes to go until midday.

Though the clocks that the Survey Corps owned were by no means particularly accurate, they weren't incorrect by a some great margin.

Some of the soldiers extending out their arms to the candleflames lit in front of them, with their shivering hands, biting sharp cold around his fingers joints, no matter how hard they rubbed in an attempt for warmth.

There was still another couple of hours left before their next meal, yet warm jugs of tea, soups and other warm liquids were being passed out along with various other resources left in the storage rooms.

The windows and doors had been fortified, sealed shut and the fires and furnaces started wherever they could as everyone buckled down in fear of being frozen by the icy storm raging outside and across the country.

The 'whooshing' of winds seemed to come with a pattern of soft snow and crushing hailstones that repeated endlessly.

A swirling storm of screaming silvers, greys and whites. There was no way to know which direction to go in such a blizzard at this time of year, for the usual landmarks were hidden behind the white so densely and erasing anything that wasn't the colour of the snow blast.

The soft crystals that would be found so bewitching from the other side of a pane glass, were simply daggers being thrown down in an attempt to break through the glass and slay any dwellers of the land below.

The Survey Corps Headquarters had been moved to the Trost district now, the lifts set up over the gate for faster transportation than moving round to either eastern or western outlier districts.

Neither expedition nor small scale mission was going to be carried out in this weather. The entire city had already closed down all its doors, and was only able to share stores through the underground routes throughout the city.

No shop was open, nor work was going to be done in this time, even if there were more things to sort out. The houses of the several thousand citizens were all locked, their windows sealed tightly and their fireplaces burning as brightly as they could.

The soft embers tried to withstand the thickening cold, threatening them with extinction as the coal could do nought to help them.

Families, both of children with their parents and orphans with their friends, were huddled round together, scooting as much warmth as they could to make it through.

Chimneys however were not proving successful here as the snow fell from all directions in irregular wisps, sneaking down to smother out the bright flames of glowing hearths.

Frankly, it was warmer away from the old fire system and better to stick in groups by a close and less exhaustive flames.

"Oh lord, thanks," was the most frequent set of mumblings that would briefly leave the lips of the few individuals sticking around and helping each other and receiving offerings of blankets and ale to them all.

Eren was seated at a table with the people he usually would, wrapped in his own jacket, cape and blanket much like everyone else was.

He hadn't spoken all day to them. In fact, he hadn't even spoken to them for the past 3 days. The last time he had said anything was a simple 'okay' when someone asked him a favour.

He had never stopped and done it… but it was surprisingly easier than Eren had previously thought to quite literally go several days without speaking a single word aloud or haver a single line of conversation with anyone.

"Hey Eren, here have a drink at least," one of his friends said. Eren didn't recognise nor muster the ability to look up and identify who it was offering him the alcohol.

The mug slid across the table and stopped a little past him after being pushed just a little too much. The soldier glanced at it, noticing the scent of ale and an allure of both sweetness and warmth.

Eren didn't take it. Not caring anything about it, he set his eyes back at the splinters and the wood boards of the table's edge.

"Eren is too young to drink," a woman's voice said, reaching over and taking the mug away and passing it back to another of their companions. Her voice should have been familiar to the unresponsive soldier. And yet it was not.

"Oh come on Mikasa, you seriously care about a few more years which we might not even live to see?" the first voice argued again back at the woman next to him reasonably.

They began a light argument, trying to spark some conversation as they all shivered as a group. All except for Eren, who seemed to shiver for a different reason.

It was cold. Drowning out the conversation and the few sounds of life around him, the Titan shifter focused on the feeling and the pain.

He had become… somewhat distant from everyone recently as they noticed. Noticed and tried to help him when they could without any result.

It's not like he blamed them in the slightest, it was just… he wished they could understand what he'd seen…

But they didn't.

Because they couldn't see what he could.

They could only try their best in doing what they could do, and Eren was grateful for that.

Yet it didn't change how much he wished for them to understand it… to see it like he did…

That didn't matter.

There was already someone who understood that, even though it was perhaps just one person.

Historia was all he needed for such a thing.

Something like that… surely would not affect his friendship with the others…

…

'_Historia…'_ Eren thought of her, like he had happened to on an easily daily basis. Missing the feeling of one's lover's close comfort. Eren was by all means in a relationship with Queen Historia.

He had only just confessed to Historia almost exactly 3 weeks ago now, and the two had began courting in secret away from public rumours and the possibility of open threat.

It had taken more effort than he imagined, to finally pull through at last, after Eren had felt doubt crumble up at him a number of times.

But everything had worked out in the end. Historia had equalled his feelings with her own, and they had both secretly established their relationship.

The snowstorm had started about a week ago, at first gentle yet consistent before the winds came in and the snow soon after built.

Since their confession, he had only been able to see her twice, and now was spending yet another week doing just that.

Seeing Historia once a week. There was no way he could survive this winter at this rate…

His heart buzzed with longing as the withdrawal symptoms, of not gazing into Historia's eyes for lifetimes, took precedence over all other feelings in his mind.

No good.

He was losing his head, falling into a drowsy feeling as he could find no deeper place to scoot into the blanket he grasped around him.

More than anything though, he was truly worried. The capital would surely be far better heated than down south here in Trost but he had no way of knowing that for sure how she was, unlike the rest of his remaining friends.

Historia was alone and separated from everyone else.

That was all that he could think about.

Cuddling up in each other's warmth and using it to help the other through the cold days…

Eren wished he could do that now.

He shivered as he felt about to doze off.

"I'm going for a nap…" Eren said absent mindly before pushing his stool away from the table and leaving tiredly. He hadn't slept well in what felt like an era past.

He didn't wait for the responses of his friends that called after him, asking if he was alright.

Of course he wasn't.

After everything that had happened…

And he was about to drown himself in a circulative argument once more. They didn't understand when they hadn't seen it like him, and he didn't blame them for that.

A cycle of repetition swinging from thoughts of the world outside to thoughts of within the walls to thoughts of her again.

Eren forced open the door, feeling his body sting at the sudden need to power stiff cold joints at the half stuck door.

He sighed as he entered the room, a personal and spacious enough one all for his own self. Moving around the room, the soldier checked the window for gaps half-heartedly, convincing himself that the small gaps between the poorly fitted window frame wouldn't bother him.

Two sheets of blankets to curl himself up in on top of his shirt, light jacket, Survey Corps cape, longcoat, military coat and another blanket that Mikasa had tied around him.

Eren was leaning down limply on his bed as he sighed, feeling queezy in his stomach and frozen on his skin. Digging his fingers beneath the covers, he tried shaking the cold of his pained joints.

He hadn't bothered to nor thought of changing, feeling content in wrapping himself under as much covers as he could.

He wasn't going to find the warmth that he longed for here.

* * *

_**Mid Winter of the Year 845 - In the Memory**_

_A mirror. He had seen this mirror so many times. _

_The Titan Shifter stirred within the memory he was all too familiar with as he watched the unexpected face in the mirror mover in accordance of his own movements._

_The beautiful woman's long hair was being brushed smooth as the young woman hummed a tune to the midday clamour outside. He deep black hair was the key difference between this woman and her younger half-sister._

_Frieda Reiss moved in accordance of her own will. It felt like Eren could sometimes affect her actions… but he wasn't even so sure of that either._

_These were 'memories' of Frieda after all, and Eren would simply see the young lady's face in the mirror as it were his own._

_It shouldn't be possible to communicate through something like that. _

_Unless of course, a past inheritor would leave a message for the one who would inherit their memories._

_He had already seen it and felt Frieda's heartfelt will._

_And regardless of whether he would have seen that particular memory or not, her wish already aligned with his own._

_This memory was different from that one, though Frieda would often comb her hair every morning, Eren had began to notice the various little differences over the different memories._

_Whether she had 'those eyes' or not. The slowly increasing number of scratches across the table. The varying amount of bristles on the hairbrush that had been accidentally plucked out. The gradually gathering dust on the window sill. And the length of the beautiful girl's hair._

_All the little details that Eren had become growingly aware of as he carefully observed each one of the various memories from Frieda alone._

_This was reality._

_It wasn't some painted and reoccurring set of faked images. There was far too much detail for that. It was no illusion, and it was the world that someone besides himself would see._

_Eren's vision wandered as Frieda got up from the chair she always sat on before the mirror, pacing across the room towards the window._

_The snow covered the whole world this time as well. Eren estimated, from the particularly cracking wood carvings and her shoulder passing hair, that this was towards the end of Frieda's life._

'_6 years ago…' Eren guessed thinking back to this time and how it would only be a few months later when everything changed. _

_The Founding Titan, chained by the will of the First Reiss King, was not capable of stopping it, no matter how secretly Frieda truly wished to._

_Frieda had longed for many things, few of which she could with the ones chocking her and her bloodline._

'_She'll be 18, no 17?' He tried to remember Frieda's age. The last few months before her end. _

_Did she even know that it was coming?_

_Could the power of a chained God have the ability to tell her such things?_

_Eren hadn't worked that out yet, but he seemed to feel it sometimes. That Frieda… that his father… knew that he would have to end up with the Titan power someday._

_Deciding that it wasn't the time to think of such things, Eren kept focus on the whole sight he could see from Frieda's eyes. He had yet to work out where this place was, though it certainly wasn't the royal palace where Historia now lived._

_There was no signs of anything nearby as all came sheeted with frost. Except for…_

_The wall. _

_The Reiss family still ruled many lands despite not being on the front seat of power, they were undeniably the rulers who the royal government bowed down to._

_Somewhere in Wall Sina perhaps, was where Frieda most often resided. Which meant…_

'_Historia would be on the other side of that wall…' he thought hopefully, wishing to see his lover even though he knew it was just as a memory, 'She would be… 9 years old now…?'_

_He sighed at the frequently reoccurring number, wondering if it was some sort of undecipherable omen._

"_Hmm, hmpp mmhmm hmm," Frieda kept humming the unknown yet familiar tune, just like she often did. The melody that a princess might sing while awaiting a hero that would never come. _

_Or just a trapped prisoner trying to raise a companion's spirits and cling onto impossible hope._

_Frieda walked towards her bed and crouched down beneath it, searching for something. She had to crawl a bit more underneath, sighing in annoyance before pulling out a box._

"…" _she had stopped humming, and though Eren wasn't sure, he could feel that her face was stressed up, perhaps… in melancholy?_

_Walking over to her table again, she placed the box down on the desk before looking back up and revealing her clean features to Eren again._

"_So it has been almost 10 years…" the lady mumbled to herself, putting her eyes closer to the mirror and making it feel as if Frieda was looking into Eren himself. "… Only half of those have I…"_

_It was sometimes difficult to tell when the person in the memories he would see was thinking or saying things out loud, though Frieda had a tendency to mumble to herself… and swear very, very loudly when something truly pissed her off._

'_10 years…?' Eren did the thought in his head as he waited for Frieda to say something else. Instead she kept staring into the mirror, leaving Eren with the hints to complete, '10 or 5 years ago, that was…'_

_A lot of things had happened in that point. But if he had to guess… the most important part would probably be – _

"_Sis! What are you doing?!" a girl's voice suddenly called out as the door was quickly opened, a little girl was hanging on the handle as she leaned into her elder sister's room inquisitively._

_She looked so much like an 8 years younger version of Frieda herself. Her facial features matched Historia's as well, only her hair was the same dark colour inherited from their father and her hair stretched slightly longer, unbraided and brushed smooth._

_The girl whom his father would crush underfoot in a few months._

"_Sorry Florian, I was just thinking," Frieda smiled in return, hiding away the box behind her back before the younger girl could see it._

"_C'mon then big sis! Everyone is waiting!" the girl cheerfully encouraged, full of life. She hopped into the room and grabbed Frieda by her arm, dragging her along._

_The woman smiled down on her as she untucked the gift from behind her back. The box that she had pulled out, now open and revealing the contents inside._

"_Here you go. You can have it now so long as you promise not to tell anyone else, okay?" The Titan shifter knelt down and nodded to the girl who looked on in equal mischief and gratitude. "Happy Birthday!"_

"_Hehe, thanks Frieda!" the young girl happily smiled and gave her sister a hug, only then taking the present happily without opening it from the box and then hugging her elder sister once more. "Love you!"_

"_I love you too sweetie," the elder reassured and responding with her own arms now that her hands were free._

"_By the way, who was that other gift for?" the now 10 year old girl's face peered up in interest. It wasn't in some expression of hidden desire for an extra gift, for the young girl was truly already satisfied. But it was with genuine curiosity. None of her other family would have a special day for them anytime soon._

"_O-Oh, that is for… another precious snowflake…" Frieda suddenly said, glancing down to beneath her bed where the other gift was hidden. Perhaps just a slightly more expensive gift, but no less thoughtful than she would for her other siblings._

"_Is it that person's birthday as well soon?" asked Florian, pondering who this person might be._

"_Yes… very soon… someone who is also very special to me…" Frieda nodded in reply and noticed Florian's expression. The dangerous smirk told her everything as Frieda looked down unamused at her youngest full blooded sister. And flicked her nose lightly, "it is not like that!"_

"_Hehe, okay," the girl stuck her tongue out playfully after teasing her elder sister at a potential love affair, who was replied with only the disbelief at her behaviour. "Tell your special person 'Happy Birthday' from me as well!"_

"_Go on, shoo little nightmare, I'll be right there," Frieda scolded her and smiled as Florian nodded and disappeared from her room._

_Frieda sighed in disbelief, walking over to her bed again and leaning down under it. She then pulled out the larger box, that was filled with several gifts._

_Her family had naturally got wind of it and presumed it was something for her youngest sister as they all sat around by the dinner table and her brother had brought it up. _

_Technically, it was for her youngest sister. Her youngest half-sister who would not receive the gifts of whatever was within their father's reach in the walls._

_Frieda wished she could bring the gifts of all her family. But her father never spoke about it. It's not like it was exactly an easy topic to bring up whenever their mother was around and unaware of his affair with another woman behind her back._

"_Someday…" Frieda managed to shake away her sadness a little, hoping for the future, "someday… I hope that… someone else would…"_

_Frieda got up suddenly, realising something and walking over to the mirror. It clicked in Eren's mind. The way she was staring into him again as the dawning realisation came in._

_Words didn't need to be said. _

_Frieda's will to whomever would inherit her memories was signed. Historia would live on after she did for sure. _

_Entrusting to the next in line to look after her even after that, Frieda looked into the mirror._

_And Eren stared back at her. _

'… _Historia's… Birthday…'_

…

_Historia was born right into the middle of winter. In the snowy coldness, her mother had given birth to her before looking at the minutes born child in disdain._

_Eren refused to see further into the memory causing his teeth to crack under the pressure of his disgust._

…

_The middle of winter._

_Historia's Birthday._

_Tomorrow._

…

'_Oh s–!'_

_Swearing curses at himself for only realising it now, Eren pulled himself out of the memory and awake._

* * *

**9 Hours Left Until Historia's Birthday – Trost District of Wall Rose**

A tiny amount of white seemed to seep in through the window. Instead of the warm rays of sunlight, the white specks were freezing to the touch of a human.

Bits of hail that had managed to squeeze through the tiny gaps from under the window in the current Scout Headquarters had tumbled onto the floor.

The storm was still continuing.

"…" Eren experienced that knowing feeling. The feeling when you're about to be late and have heaps of work left to do. "… Shit."

He lurched up off the bed, shoving the covers away from his body, refusing to let the freezing cold atmosphere bother him any longer.

The end of his bed was damp, despite his earlier check, wet from the melted fractures of hail

"Shit," Eren repeated, grabbing his boots and shoving his feet into them, roughly doing up the straps without care, "shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit –"

Dressing faster than the speed of Levi, Eren pressed his face against the glass after throwing on his longcoat, and eyeing the corners of the sky.

It was misty and snow was swirling all over, seemingly mostly from the north east. The land was filled with several inches of snow.

There was no way any carriage would dare to be travelling through this.

There was no way that any shopkeepers would have the time to spend away from the fire, let alone even considering customers.

"Shit… shit, shit, SHIT!" Eren kept swearing the curses that his mother would slap him for uttering in front of her, as he paced violently across the room.

No one would blame him for not being able to turn up with this weather.

Historia wouldn't even ask him to get anything for her and would surely say the typical line of 'all I need for my Birthday is you!'.

As if Eren cared though.

His first birthday gift to his lover.

* * *

_**Mid Winter of the Year 835 – Her Birth Day**_

_The snow had been continuously pillowing down in sheets and masses of groups. Unbending and unstopping, it tore across the countryside just like it had the last year, and the year before that._

_White flakes whirling around the once lush and enveloping farmlands, in an angry vortex of isolation. Each farm and houses was separated, practically impossible for anyone who would be insane enough to leave to survive for long before freezing to death. _

_A bleak space of ice and wind. The land outside was untraversable at this time, a natural prison for those who failed to escape into a shelter of warmth somewhere._

_The farmers and field workers had already steeled away and locked down every window and crack within their homes, permitting none of their warmth to be stolen nor shared to anyone else._

_For a lone baby swan, that had neither been able to follow the rest of its family to the warmer south nor was able to find safe refuge along with others who would stay dug in away from the winter, there was no hope._

_Flying alone in the soon to be frozen desert, it would try to squeeze into a warm refuge of any sort, even at the house which it died at the doorsteps of, frozen to death and forgotten beneath the building snow._

_Inside of the house, the open hearth pumped slow warmth into the room as the woman sat up in her delivery bed of the old farm, now covered in sheet white, purer than any material they could come to find, with the exception of what was provided by the woman's master._

_The blonde haired woman stared at the wailing child that she had just given birth to._

_Looking at it._

_In utter disdain as it cried for warmth and the loving embrace of a parent._

_The woman wasn't planning to give her daughter anything like that. It was a girl. She had wanted a son, but luck had once more not awarded her._

_The baby kept crying and woman yelled at it to silence, only causing the newborn to quake in fear and cry even more,_

_The woman truly considered tossing the baby out into the snow if only to silence it with a cold death by freezing. _

_But she could do that. She would be throwing her whole chance away._

'_Master… I can be a good wife… I promise… I'll give you whatever you need… I'll be a better wife than that woman…' the woman prayed for it wordlessly._

_For a future where she could be taken in as the new wife of a Lord of the land. She would live in the great halls instead of sweeping them, dine on the lavish foods of the nobility and wear fine clothes that she had long lusted for._

_All of that, in exchange for pleasuring her master. She may be a concubine now, but the woman hoped this would change it._

_She couldn't get rid of this child yet, the baby had its uses for her until she spoke to her master and showed the girl to him._

_He would want a son next time, a daughter had far less value than a son for him. _

_All her master needed to do is to arrange for his wife's removal and then she could take her place where she always wanted._

_He would surely want to as well. Nights filled with constant pleasure for the Lord Reiss. The woman was certain that her master would want that._

_The tool she intended to use was still crying, begging for just a little warmth as it began coughing in the freezing air._

"_SHUT UP! Stop crying you ungrateful little –!" The mother yelled at her daughter, spitting out curses at her existence. The woman's patience had run out. _

_The baby only got more frightened, continuing to struggle to live, as it cried for someone to at least wrap her in a blanket, drowning out her mother's attempts to yell._

"_Alma," her mother had walked in from the kitchen after hearing her daughter's yell, looking at the baby girl in disappointment again. "Are you really going to keep that bastard child?"_

_The cold and emotionless voice inquired about the newborn she had witnessed the birth of a few hours before, much to both her and her husband's disappointment as a girl was born instead of a boy._

_The woman's parents had not been pleased when they learnt of how her daughter was not the Lord's playtoy but didn't object to the new mother's intentions in becoming the Reiss's wife._

_It's not like they could object to the wishes of the Lord of their land, however they still felt an interest in the possibility of gaining wealth for their remaining family._

_Not needing to tend to the farmlands again, the thought of it made them comply with their daughter's desires and prepare for the new birth of their grandchild._

_And so the child had been born in the middle of the winter as the land became icy and the winds hollow and exempt from the warmth from the hearth of a home._

"… _It's too late now," the woman lifted the baby improperly by the head and gave her daughter to her mother to hold. "Keep the damn thing. I've suffered way too much for it but it's born now, right?"_

_The new grandmother put the child into her chest as it started to quieten it down beneath the scornful gaze of her grandparent. _

"_It's not too late yet Alma," her grandmother stated, "we can still get rid of it. Try again with him and this time hope for a son."_

"_Tch. After all my hard work?" the woman expressed as she covered herself silently. "Fine. Drown it in the sink or toss it into the fire or whatever. Throw it out, the snow will make it disappear."_

_Her grandmother narrowed her eyes uncertainly. They would have to wait another while before the snow cleared and the Lord Reiss would send for her again. _

"_We'll just keep this one working at the farm for a few years then," her grandmother suggested instead, knowing that they needed extra field hands. "You can have the next one with him and we'll just hide this one, if it even survives."_

_The newborn's mother didn't reply, giving her silent consent at the idea before throwing another blanket on herself._

"… _Fine. But I'm not feeding it," the woman turned her head one last time, glaring at the quietly whining girl before turning round and not looking at her daughter for the next several months. "It's weak anyway, so it won't last long working for you."_

_Her grandmother left after nodding in agreement, walking into the kitchen where her husband was resting on the couch with an almost empty bottle of alcohol in his hand._

_She walked over to the room through the entrance, picking up a bucket filled with goatmilk stored for the winter, she searched over through the cupboard until she found a drinking vessel for the child._

_The two now growing old farmers had used it for her own daughter in the past but it had been left aside and beginning to rot in the damp since._

_The woman used it, giving the now silent baby, its first drops of milk before it got wrapped up in a old clothes and placed to one side on the kitchen table._

_Blanketless._

"_We're keeping it then?" the woman's husband finally asked as the baby was placed near tot the second stove in the living room. His wife nodded in reply. "… Don't you think it would be a mercy to get rid of her now at least? There's no guarantee that the Lord Reiss is just going to accept Alma."_

_His wife shrugged in understanding but gave him the knowing look to place his hopes on it at least for now._

_They sat in two different chairs, warming their hands before the smoking fire, carrying soft fumes into the growing night._

"_What its going to be called?" the grandmother called over to the other room where her daughter was resting. The woman wasn't asleep, but she made no response, not caring for whatever name they chose._

_The two elder parents nodded in understanding. _

_It would be better to let the Lord Reiss name her in the event that he chose to take their daughter in. If not, then they'll just someone else give the name._

_They couldn't bother nor think up of a name for her at any rate, and there was no way to know if the child would survive anyway._

_The glowing embers of flames managed to at least carry through the cold room's air and reach the baby, giving it just enough warmth to survive through the night, and the ones after._

_The warmth of the fire was at least enough to shield its fragile body, but it weren't nearly enough to fill the shell of life that had been caused._

_The broken void already carved._

* * *

**9 Hours Left Until Historia's Birthday - Survey Corps Headquarters**

"… E… ren?" was the response that half a dozen people were able to utter as a storming blur rushed passed them through the hall.

Their fellow friend and soldier in arms had been a growing concern on their minds recently. Ever since after that battle, he had become dispirited completely. Worn out and dragged out like he had been in the past beneath the Reiss chapel.

To see the brunet thundering across the room wile the rest were shivering or slowly filling their stomachs with something warm, was a very strange sight.

Dashing across the hall, he paid no attention to the calls of some of his friends, too caught up in his frantic though process.

'_A gift… a present…'_ Eren addressed the most pressing issue in his mind. Which definitely was not the fact that he would be walking into a sweeping snowstorm the moment he steeped out the door.

Something to give Historia for her birthday.

Maybe it was perhaps too eager on his part to think so, but Eren genuinely thought he knew Historia pretty well.

It's not like she didn't have things that she wanted, but things that could be given as a present for her birthday, were far less in number.

Or more specifically, they quite literally numbered zero. She was still the Queen in the end, and although it would require approval first, she could get her hands on anything she wanted. The money would be subtracted from the national treasury and the job would be done.

'_Damn, what hasn't Historia got…'_ Eren pounded his head as he paced to the front door, getting odd looks from the people all around.

He momentarily looked up to see the locked door, barricaded in the case of strong winds throwing something which would pull the latches open. Not to mention that the snow was already several inches deep.

It would surely be physically impossible for someone to trudge threw such deep snow, still constantly building by the minute.

"Eren…" Armin suddenly appeared next to him, turning him round by the shoulder, "what's wrong?"

He expected Eren to shake his head and tell him 'it's nothing', before probably returning to his room. Instead Eren walked back to the door.

And began tearing it open.

"Hey you bastard! What are you playing at?" Jean yelled from the table, not impressed at Eren suddenly kick the crates blocking the door aside which Jean had to take care of several times already.

He had now idea how his trainee days rival was able to push stuff which took him half an hour to move, but he would be damned if his hard work was going to be met only with frozen icicles in his face.

Jean blinked. Mikasa blinked. Armin blinked. Everyone else just stared or were half sleeping.

And Eren was gone. The door had been opened and instead of freezing air flooding in, Eren had stormed out, and seemed to burn a path through it.

"…Huh?" Jean cocked his head, trying to comprehend. He moved so fast. The door looked like it was ripped off it's hinges despite the creaking sounds signalling that it was still holding on.

The speed at which he flashed out. Could Captain Levi even move that fast?

Everyone remained silent in incomprehension.

And the a heap of snow flushed in and smacked Jean specifically in the face.

"CLOSE THE BLOODY DOOR!" Floch had just woke up.

* * *

**9 Hours Left Until Historia's Birthday – Royal Palace**

The snow was now gently falling in the centre of the walls. The main storm had moved further south by now and was already continuing its rush down the slopes of their world, extending its domains as far as it could stretch.

"Your Majesty, it will still be a few days before the roads can be cleared," the Queen's aide announced from behind the young girl, staring out of the window as she watched the cold world become still. "You won't be having any visitors for a while yet."

Historia kept staring at the frozen drops of water. Through the window at the corridor where she looked through after just completing her meeting in the other room.

She watched them fall.

Snowflakes.

Crystal like and of a beautiful shape like they were so often drawn in books and told in stories. Intricate patterns of clear sparkling glass.

They looked nothing like that.

Just like every year, the snowflakes looked nothing like they were so often described. Instead of something fine crafted and beautiful, they were simply… normal.

Normal collections of frozen water turned white, falling it simple little bits and bobs instead of in some star shaped pattern.

"… I see." She responded vaguely in response.

She wouldn't see Eren again for a few more days.

She wouldn't see anyone for the next few days besides her reoccurring work colleagues.

She only had the normal snow to keep her company.

"Then, if you please excuse me your Majesty," her aide bowed shortly to the young woman's turned back, "I bid you goodnight."

The elderly lady was gone before she could return the gesture, too fixated on watching the false crystals.

Historia sighed, before turning around and moving through the palace again from the map in her head. She knew it well now, when her world was mostly spent in here, she had quickly become familiar with all the routes, the different rooms and the secret passageways.

'_I hope the orphans aren't causing trouble…'_ she thought of the next most familiar place she had, easily able to map out the simple barns and rooms within them.

The Queen had especially ordered extra bedding, clothes and fuel to be sent to the workers there before the start of winter.

If anyone would feel the cold of Winter, it would be kids like them.

And… people who were once just like them.

She thought about him as she wondered through the halls.

The one person that had dug himself so deep into her, grasping her beating heart in his hand. Historia still sometimes felt it was like a dream, to be actually in a secret relationship with Eren of all people.

What would Krista have thought if she had been told of the future back then?

Historia mused the thought, as she listened to the storm which picked up once more.

The glass seemed to shake a bit, making her walk on edge a little at the thought of it breaking and the cold winds flooding in The light ringing continued against the window while she did her best to ignore it.

Her footsteps across the carpeted floor were muffled almost completely from the noise outside. And the hammering of glass. Which seemed to keep following her down the hallway.

Historia stole a glance to the glass. She would have almost missed it fluttering around between the window pillars, panickedly pressing itself against the window. "…Eh?"

It seemed to look at her. It was looking at her. It froze her within an instant and sent her hurrying to the window, pulling herself up on the window sill. Without even thinking.

The window was unlatched by it's ice-cold lock that had been sealed shut some days ago when the snow had become heavy.

She pulled the whole glass pane upwards and for an instance blazing glacial death exploded straight into the room invading and pushing out the vague warmth of the hallway and freezing anything in it's way.

Historia felt it biting and slicing against her like steel blades tearing at her throat, eyes and body, but she easily withstood it.

All she needed was a split second and the window had been closed again, sealing of the fierce winter. She breathed out slightly, her airline felt constricted and her breathing slow from just the short moment.

"What… where you doing out there…?" the Queen spoke softly after a while to the empty hallway. The thing that had been scooped up in her arms in the blink of an eye fluttered in response. Then it let out a barely audible sound of inhumane speech.

In her hands, there was a small animal that at first glance seemed to be resting dead after being frozen to death. But ever so slightly, its feathers trembled and shook, signalling that it was still clinging onto life.

It had been so full of desperate life just seconds ago. Beating against the window in anguished last moments.

She dared to unpeel her hands for just a second and take away the warmth again just for a moment.

A swan. A baby swan.

Long neck and gray feathers. Paddled feet and large size for it's kind. She wasn't very knowledgeable about bird species at all, however she was certain that the animal was a baby swan.

A thought crossed her mind as she looked upon the pitiable, quivering life that it certainly couldn't be a baby at it's moderate size they was about half the width from one of her shoulders to the other.

But the small creature that the Queen was now cradling in her arms like a newborn, looked like it had just awoken as a baby.

A bird which would actually be foolish enough to struggle on outside in this time of year.

It felt like a short strange dream for such a thing to happen one day. But the fragile feel and weak bones that somehow were holding it alive told her it was real.

Historia left with a fast pace, intent to getting the little bird nestled in her arms to warmth within her own quarters after blinking once and breaking to a short sprint.

She threw the doors open without giving time for the guards to move and only stare at her in confusion as they often seemed to do.

Rushing about the room, the Queen grabbed a blanket off one of the cupboards before quickly moving in front of the already blazing fireplace where she lay it down as a cushion and rested the young bird around in the blanket, close to the fire, making sure not to harm it or put it in any danger of the flames, sometimes comforting warm and in other times painful.

She went back to her bed and took one of her pillows, bringing it over to where she had laid the frail swan and sat on her knees.

The guards had closed the door for her at least, allowing the warm air to circulate through the whole room slowly.

Slowly reaching out, she felt the shivering bird carefully. It felt so delicate. One wrong movement and Historia was afraid she would damage it.

'… _Still alive…'_ she thought. She gently caressed over it's shaking wings, feeling frozen to the touch and tried supporting the blanket around it.

It's neck was curled inwards, hugging at it's breast. Was it too hot right now? Would it die from the cold by morning? She hesitated over how to best act.

The swan desperately hitting the windows as she walked through the hallway. Struggling on with some hope against the Winter for its own life.

She had been caught in a daze by it. Ignoring that light hammering at the window, begging her grandparents to let her in, she buried the cruel memory.

It was strange.

Historia resisted that past which she had once been cleared from her mind by Frieda. It was different when her half-sister would temporarily make her forget her memories of her and block her out.

There were things which had been permanently erased from her mind as she found out along with Eren a while ago.

But the hammering on the glass and the desperate feathers scattered out brought some reminiscence of it back.

Historia looked at the swan once more, feeling it's body.

It was warm.

Despite how freezing to the touch it's feathers where, somehow it's core was beating warmly to her hand.

The swan's head was tucked into it's body feathers, huddled into a small ball. She couldn't see them now, but she could have sworn it just moments ago before she went rushing to open that window.

The swan had been staring at her. The black pearl eyes seeing right through her as it struggled and beat itself to get attention.

An omen or message from someone, telling her not to forget.

She watched the last bits of stardust fall for that day.

* * *

**8 Hours Left Until Historia's Birthday - Trost District**

Eren had stepped out, made 9 powerful strides forward.

Before then slipping and collapsing face first into the ankle high snow.

Only then after his sudden adrenaline rush and buzzing idea, did his senses return and realise just how freezing it was.

And that he was literally eating snow that seared at his lips untouched by anyone except Historia. And the food he ate. And the fists he took there. And the one time when his horse reared its head back at smashed him in the teeth.

Aside from all that, Historia was his first kiss.

Actually going back to the subject at hand, Eren coughed and stumbled back up, glancing back as he heard a shout. The snow was falling everywhere, creating a mist like world where Eren could no longer even see the building which he had just left after a few metres.

He couldn't see further than maybe 4 metres in his vision.

That was more than enough.

Eren took another step forward, suddenly shaking snow out his hair with the creak of his joints, foot sinking down halfway through the cold desert.

Historia.

There was one thing that he knew he simply had to get Historia on her birthday

It was obvious.

There was no need to question further.

'… _The place to look…' _Eren though, vaguely aware of how his whole body was convulsing and the pain leering through.

His body lurched with every step and yet Eren's eyes remained fixed.

A few others thoughts occurred to him such as perhaps not rushing out the door without informing the commander.

But it was too late for that now anyway. He would simply have to face the consequences afterwards.

Hardened water found their way into his jacket in every possible way. They packed down his neck, slipped underneath his collarbone and between the fabric that flapped at the front.

Eren could feel his blood creating painful heat and his skin becoming icy, failing its resistance.

Getting a bearing of his orientation, Eren began his challenge to the storm with his own as he began forcing his way up towards the inner gate.

Wall Rose. Trost district was quite literally all shut down, and the same is quite likely for the nearby country, however he would still find it there.

The one gift he knew Historia must have.

Flakes pelted against his frozen cheeks, clinging to his eyelashes and almost neck reaching brown hair.

The swirling beating winds numbed his exposed skin, biting in beneath his fingertips and clothes, creating an exhausting chore to make a single stride through the accumulative snow drifts.

Shivering, Eren heard his teeth begin to chatter. His exhaled deep breath warm his face briefly before sucked away by the cold as he continued advancing forward.

Dry, aching throat from thirst and cold. Wind cut through his clothing, and he found his vision fading, eyes forced into a squint and made watery.

Discomfort arises from snow drifting down the collar of his coat, into his boots, and between mittens and cuffs of his clothing.

This was winter.

And it wasn't enough to stop Eren Jaeger.

"Ow!" he cried out as a fluttering newspaper slapped him in the face and sent him rolling around backwards all the way to the door again.

* * *

**1 Hour Left Until Historia's Birthday – Royal Palace**

Historia had her memories returned from Frieda during the time in the cave. Reminiscing on past times, she could still recall how Frieda had come about 6 years ago from around this time.

She had turned up at the farm, returned Historia memories for the time and snuck her out from beyond the fence for the first and last time.

Laughing all the way, the elder sister had brought Historia to a small wagon that she had someone bring.

"…" Historia sighed as she rearranged the cushion on the tiny swan, its long-ish neck burrowing in together into the rest of its body.

Looking back into the memory, Historia reached into her pocket and pulled out the red band which she still had.

That had been the first thing her sister had given her. She had brought her about ten different things if she could recall. Or was it eleven?

Historia couldn't remember what the others were, aside from a particularly large one being a weird machine that Frieda mentioned having a tough time getting.

What was there? Clothes? Books? Shoes?

She seemed to think that she had received such gifts but could not recall the exact details.

Tucking in the feathers of the poor bird in once more, Historia stood back up and walked across to one of her cupboards, placing her braids amongst several others that she had been recently using.

The red one, always holding the special place.

She carried it around with her, even if she wasn't wearing it.

Historia had been wondering for a while. About what had happened that day. Her sister had helped her sneak all the gifts that she didn't think she would ever deserve nor receive into her small room that Frieda always grumbled seriously about.

"Tomorrow…" Historia decided, not bothering to think about anything else and slipping into her corner of the bed.

She wondered why her elder sister chose that day of all days.

* * *

**1 Hours Left Until Historia's Birthday – Capitol City Mithras **

"Oh…" the cold breath parted briefly as he quickly shut his mouth to prevent any nits of snow from the whirlwinds entering inside his body.

He realised a problem as he wandered down the rough area where the road had been gathered through Wall Rose. Eren had already been on the move for 2 hours and he only passed the wall of the Trost outlier district recently.

His strides were as large as he could muster despite already feeling the aching feeling of fatigue on them, taking effort to push through so much snow.

Reaching out with his ungloved and bare hand, he tried to guide the way but it is swallowed before it has gone even a few inches.

Eren had narrowed his eyes until they are almost shut in order to save my eyes from the blinding white, and all the while the wind raged without end, only reducing its ferocity long enough to gather the strength for another attack.

After he had left Trost, Eren had transformed into a Titan and began running across to the capitol at his fastest speed.

Until he got crushed by stone.

The old abandoned castle that had been nearby had been slowly rotting away over the years. Until the storm was able to lift a piece of the wall up and let it plummet straight on Eren a few kilometres away.

His Titan form had been crushed and destroyed instantly, but he had managed to escape after a while and transformed again.

Then he was hit by an avalanche from the mountains nearby. He had been forced to roll all the way back half his little trip and buried in several metres of snow that he had to dig out of.

Even with the heat emitting from his Titan body, it still took a couple hours to free himself at last. Trying to be more careful now, Eren had gone back to rushing to the centre of the Walls again.

Until a lightning bolt hit him.

He was the tallest structure around, but it had paralysed his whole Titan body and he had been unable to move for another while.

When he finally did, he transformed for the 3rd time and tried to be even more careful.

And then the Hero of the Walls, the Titan Slayer, the Founding Titan, the Coordinate, the Eren Jaeger… met his greatest rival in the universe.

He had tripped over an apple tree.

The foot from his Titan form was instantly severed by the unrivalled intellect of the organism, awaiting him to cross his path, predicting his every move.

As soon as he lost one leg, he had pressed down on his other far too awkwardly and it had also torn off, and he had collapsed legless.

Defeated by the cunning of his great arch nemesis, Eren had climbed out in defeat and glared at the foe. His final transformation was exhausted and he was at the mercy of the storm.

But his enemy was just and did not pursue to finish him off today. Bidding the mighty foe a rematch someday, Eren had rushed to pursue the last stretches of the way now that he had at least seen the walls of Mitras in sight, their duel unsettled for another day according to the future child Jaeger.

Eren was now close to the gates. He was short on time but the snow had almost stopped here at the centre of the Walls and he could make the distance before the midnight bell.

Wires of pain felt through his arm, as if about to tear his blood circuits out with agonising slowness. Steam was lifting from all across his body after using his Titan transformation.

Skin flushed in white, as if it had been sunk down into his bones that peeled up through skin, Eren thought of the next step. Entering the palace somehow…

His face contorted from the stinging as the icy pain tried to steal his consciousness away but he resisted.

Just a little more.

Just a little further, and he could tell Historia what he failed to tell her 3 weeks ago.

He prayed that the gift would be suitable for this occasion.

* * *

**20 Minutes Left Until Historia's Birthday**

Queen Historia had been laying on the back of her bed, staring up at the unpainted ceiling of her room as she awaited to drift into sleep.

The storm had kept her up for the past couple hours, gently rattling the windows and swooshing through the cracks from under the door.

Historia heard the sudden consecutive scraping from somewhere in the room but paid it no heed at first, passing it off as yet another effect of the snowstorm.

She kept thinking about her life now. The secret lover of the 'Hope of Humanity'. Eren Jaeger's fame had spread across the whole world within the walls, as the one who accomplished it all.

The one who it would be impossible without. Eren was the centrepiece of everything when it came to advancing out to the future against their enemies.

She heard the consecutive hits against something. She realised it was something beating against the window gently, perhaps large blocks of hail were now dropping.

The Survey Corps would be bottled down in this storm, awaiting for it to pass before they would descend over the wall and search for Titans in the snowy fields that had wandered either too far east or west from Trost district.

The snow was not ideal in the slightest for horseback travel, but with their current batch, they would send Eren out in Titan form and he would destroy the ones who were no longer bound to Trost and the giant hammer.

It was Eren once more that was carrying them forward, as always. He would surely be their trump card in future battles with their enemies…

But even he would be at the Survey Corps headquarters at this time, being shielded in from the snowstorm.

The consecutive knocks rang again and Historia counted three of them for the 3rd time, and she finally decided to throw herself up and find its source this time.

She scanned the room and walked into the general direction before hearing the sounds for a fourth time and heading to the window they were coming from.

Historia pulled open the curtains…

And her jaw hit the ground a second after.

…

He was freezing out in the ongoing blizzard while holding tightly against the two columns off from the wall.

Somehow managing to keep itself balanced with both legs and one arm leaning against opposite sides of the walls of pillars, he was shivering dangerously.

Eren waved at her.

Historia blinked and gapped and could not do anything else.

She considered if this some figment of imagination caused from her earlier wish.

"Ah-!" Until Eren yelped and almost slipped.

Snapping into action, Historia practically tore the hinges off from the window and poked her face right in front of him, "wh-, E-, j-just get in here!"

She whispered deadlily to him as she grabbed him by the waist and pulled him in, though Eren quickly adjusted his hands beneath the now open window frame and supported himself inside.

He fell onto the carpet of Historia's room, his legs getting caught up on and almost unresponsive across the edge.

Historia pushed his legs aside and quickly shut the window as smoothly as she could, before calming her breathing and looking at her collapsed Titan shifter on the floor, covered in snow, frost and what looked like hardened clothing.

"Eren…?" she crouched and whispered disbelievingly, grasping his freeing hand between hers. Her other half turned his head painfully and gave her a reassuring smile. "… A-Ah, come this way now."

She pulled him out gently and took straight to the other side of the room where the fire was still blazing and the blanket containing the strange encounter was still present.

"Eren…" she sat him down right in front of it, seeing how his body reacted very positively to the new source of warmth.

Historia looked at him and blinked again. Eren was here. The storm was still raging across the country and it was quite clear that Eren had somehow managed to arrive here nonetheless.

The Queen looked at him, and then back to the window. _'Did he… how the hell did he get up here?!'_

This was only the third floor but of a palace like this, but the ground at very least would be around 25 metres below. It was probably close to 30, higher than he would be even if he stretched out his arms in Titan form.

While his joints were half frozen, he had still somehow managed to bypass the whole capitol's security and just turn up on the other side of her window.

Historia opened her mouth to speak but decided to quickly pull the sheets of her bed and drag them across the floor over to the fire, before throwing a portion of the great cover around Eren whom she sat down next to.

"H-H-Happy Birthday…" he shakily spoke, struggling to move his tongue to pronounce it, turning his head to her, "… Historia…"

"… W-What?!" she became startled at what Eren spoke, wondering _'Did he just say.. "Birth" Day…?'_

"I don't… understand?"

"I...I know I'm just a terrible partner when I turn up this late," he elaborated, stretching his limbs in front of the fire, "I-I only found out recently, and never even thought to ask about it."

"But… Eren, I don't get it?" she struggled again, trying to get his attention which he resisted, "what are you… did you come here with permission? Why… How did…"

"Y-Yeah, I-I mean no for the last one, but…" pausing, he glanced to his side, noticing the blanket next to him and connecting the dots to the animal beside him strangely akin to himself, he mused. "I-It should be time now, a-and since it's your first Birthday t-together-"

"No Eren, just look at me already," her voice stopped him, both gazing in each other's eyes again longingly into realisation.

"What do you mean by my 'Birthday'?" Historia cocked her head in pure confusion. She had never heard such a word before.

* * *

**Exactly Mid Winter of the Year 851 – Midnight**

'… _Huh?'_ Eren's mind ceased. He frowned before understanding it all after seeing Historia sky blue diamonds once more.

Birthdays… weren't celebrated here yet.

He had lost himself in the memories once more, and suddenly realised the obvious case. There was not a single time in his memory where he had celebrated his own birthday.

Nobody inside the walls did. At least not in the current year.

Traditions like that didn't exist… yet,

"It's… the day… you were… born…" Eren tried to answer uncertainly. That was what the date meant at least.

"…But… why… what's so… significant about that?" Historia hesitantly wondered.

The Titan shifter breathed out and in. He had made his own blunder in a way as he had seen the memories of Frieda and connected them with a place beyond here.

But his resolved seemed to steel itself as the new overpowering purpose took him over.

"What are you talking about? It's the most important day of the year," he boldly stated.

…

"… Eh?" She gasped slightly, feeling a sudden wave hit her whole chest and send her blood pumping at a thousand kilometre a second.

"The day on which you were born. How could that be anything but the most important date in the whole year…?" He spoke it softly and without doubts. There was no sarcasm nor doubt in his voice.

…

"The day… I was born…" the Queen repeated his words.

Eren nodded, affirming her understanding.

"Is such a day… really that special?" she didn't speak of it in ill opinion, only genuine curiosity.

"Yes. It's the most special day in the world. It's the most important day in the world. It… It is the happiest day in the world!" Eren became somewhat eccentric for a moment before calming down when he saw her face.

"… W…hy?" She wanted to hear it. She had surpassed whom he she once was, but she still wanted to hear it.

"B-Because you were born into this world on that day" Eren said the words of his mother. And spoke only of his own belief.

"… H-Historia… t-there's nothing left that makes more happier than you being born into this world…"

…

She couldn't contain it any longer. Each words seemed to make her heart explode. The Queen let warm liquid run down her cheeks, revealing them to the only person in the room.

"Ah! S-Sor… oh…" Eren noticed her expression then, dropping his words as he watched tears of heartfelt sweetness drop.

"L-Lean down…" Historia told him, after wiping them away.

He did.

She grabbed his face and smashed their lips together in the instant.

The force of their teeth striking together sharply let out an audible noise. Their teeth ached momentarily from the collision, but it soon vanished from the corners of their minds, drowned out by the intensity of their tender lips against each other.

They both sometimes pondered for a moment whether their relationship was progressing too fast but discarded the thought soon after.

They didn't care what other people said. They didn't care if by comparison, they were proceeding much too fast.

They were already comfortable with each other. And they were already happy to jump steps together if need be.

They didn't need to bond over time when they already have one indisputably precious moment together. They already had something that meant more than any other sense of logic for them.

But they intended to bond over time anyway. They didn't need to take things in any order, but they were going to anyway, because they wanted to.

They had shared three kisses on the day of their confession, 3 weeks ago. They had only been able to meet on the day after that and 2 weeks ago in between both their schedules and the growing snowstorm that covered the world between the walls.

On those two days, they have kissed on about half a dozen occasions. Soft, quick and gentle.

Their lips were indenting deeply onto each other's this time, trying to merge into each other as strongly as possible.

Trying to become one and whole together.

He could feel her raging heartbeat as it pressed onto his own chest, The drumming travelled through the fabrics of their clothes, into his skin and down to his growing excited beat.

The passionate force between them was eventually released, the feeling of being crushed together in delight and desire for more connection.

Leaning down and still cuddling her in his chest, he whispered with hot breath against her ear.

"I'm so happy that you were born."

"I'm so happy that you are alive."

"I'm so happy that you are here with me now."

Again and again, Historia felt his voice.

The loving voice of the Devil that she loved.

For the girl who had spent almost the whole 16 years of her life thinking that everyone would be happier if she had never been born, there were few things that could make her happier than such words from the one whom had seized her heart and soul.

She had her sister unknowingly for many years, though even knowing that had come about from Eren. Historia loved her sister, but it was a very different love that she felt for Eren.

She had been gifted forgotten things, of equal affection for many years. She honestly felt too indulgent in it, but… hearing it from **Eren** seemed to affect her entire core.

Historia was different from back then when she spent with the forgotten care of her sister. And right now, her whole life seemed to tremble at his words, making her believe that his words were truth.

"A-Anyway here…" Eren steamed a little as he held out the gift from his half disintegrated clothing.

"Eren…" Historia still watered in happiness even after he had wiped them off. She didn't need a present. But she knew Eren was going to give her one regardless.

"What is it…?" she took it curiously and inspected it doubtfully, before brushing off the wrapped cloth in which it was in.

It was a glass bottle of milk.

"So… what was the idea behind this?" Historia looked up and smiled dangerously.

'… _You're going to hit me anyway…'_ Eren thought while giving her a cheeky smile.

"It's so you can grow up big and strong lik– ah?!" Eren explained.

He was right.

Historia glared at him and put her finger to her lips again, before punching him again.

"So where's my real present?" she asked him again after a fifth punch, rolling her eyes.

"I thought I would be enough?" he teased her earlier thoughts, before pulling out something else from beneath his cloak instead, "sorry, this is what I was going to give you."

He pulled it out slowly from behind his back, letting it unfold by itself. It was simply –

A blanket.

Historia eyed it in wonder as Eren held it out to her and began nervously fidgeting, awaiting her reply as she held onto it.

"This is… ah?! W-Wait, Eren, I can't -" she noticed it. Such an ordinary brown colour, done with ordinary string and wool, with an ordinary pattern in it.

"No. I want you to have it, i-if it's a satisfactory gift…" Eren spoke. It was rather embarrassing when he thought back to it.

It was arguably a baby's cot. Eren's past baby cot.

"B-But, you're mother…" Historia remembered it when Eren had told her on the way back from Shinganshina. They had found the contents of the basement that they had searched for, along with…

"Yeah, my dad must have kept it down there as well after I grew out of it…" Eren verified, remembering as he found it when they searched for anything else. It had been in the corner of the room, protected from the dust and had hit with a tinge of nostalgia.

Eren had ended up taking it as well with him, and keeping it in his room. The flower shaped pattern was still as clear as in distant memory.

It really was rather embarrassing to think of giving someone a baby's momento. However –

"Y-you said it in the past right…" Eren stepped forward and took the blanket for a second before flicking it through the air and wrapping it around the shoulder's Historia's night dress. "… If only we had met as kids… somehow… we could have wrapped ourselves together in this blanket, right…"

Her face fumed, looking down and holding the ends of the blanket around her.

It was warm.

As if it fended off the inside coolness from the winter storm, it was warm.

It was big enough to cover all of Historia's chest at least,

"Yeah…" she smiled at him, "… this is… the warmth I'm sure I longed for as a child…"

He smiled back, brushing a strand of her hair behind her ear,

"Thank you Eren…" Historia said, "… it's late… but it wasn't too late… it's… so warm…"

"Well, I'm glad that you can actually cover yourself with it," Eren teased her as always before going on about her size.

She rolled her eyes away and couldn't care about that right now.

All she could care about, was what was engraved within the blanket.

Strand after strand of wool, knitted by struggle, trial and effort.

It was so warm.

So warm.

What had been put in to make it.

Who had once wrapped himself within it.

Why it had been given to her now all of all times.

The warmth that she had been denied was here now. It felt like she had been waiting for it for a long time.

'… _Ah… I see…'_ Historia believed she understood it better now. What Eren had noticed in her at some point, but what she hadn't noticed about herself.

The warmth came from the meaning behind being given it.

She understood it so much better now.

Historia kissed Eren on the cheek. "Hey… are you warm right now?"

"Yeah, totally," Eren lied unsuccessfully, as she pushed him over to sit on her bed for a second before moving around the room again.

She had returned after stepping silently towards the door and double checking that the doors were locked just as expected, and pulled the key out before laying it on the nearby desk.

"I shouldn't lean down here though…" Eren suggested after picking up the sheets from the floor and arranging them on her bed again. "I'm still cold and wet… I'll sleep by the –"

"No…" Historia had already pulled him down, pressing against his still cold form. "I-It's just sleeping in the same bed alright, don't get any wrong ideas… but… we've slept in the same room before right…"

Eren gaped but nodded, butterflies fluttering in his stomach as Historia pulled him in, already leaving some melted snow dampening the bedsheets,

Historia took her pillow and laid the side of her head down onto it, and gestured Eren to do the same on the opposite temple so that they faced each comfortably.

"Ah, sorry…" Eren whispered, as he felt his longer legs hit and get entangled in Historia's, who locked herself between him and scooted over into his chest.

Her hair tickled Eren's nose and he noticed the lavender scent in it, no doubt from her shampoo.

"… Big, lovable idiot…" Historia muttered into him, before wrapping her arms around him in a half cuddle and half rest, just as she this time laid her head on one of Eren's biceps as he snaked his other arm around her back comfortingly.

They lay in bed together, fully clothed and unmoving in each other's embrace.

And then, Historia moved again, untucking the end of the blanket that was still around her, she turned it to the longest end, and threw it over Eren's back,

"Ah, hey, it'll get wet as w-" he tried to argue. His clothes where no doubt freezing and yet Historia was stubbornly refusing to let go.

"Shush, you're cold aren't you…" she cooed at him, silencing any further resistance.

He didn't feel cold at all to her. The blanket around them, seemed to make such feelings foreign and distant like the gently settling snowflakes outside.

Her bed was damp in some spots but they were hardly anything to worry about now. She would have to make up some excuse in the morning, though it was becoming increasingly problematic.

Her maids and servants were beginning to make silent talk over the possibility that she may have an intimate relationship with someone.

The constant flings of excuses whenever Eren would visit had started to become tedious and overused, making them have to be more careful when moving around.

But then… there where times when they couldn't care.

Basked in the other's warmth, acting as divine protection, they comforted each other's beings.

It was different than before.

He was different than before.

Eren was busy brushing her hair affectionately as he had never been done before. It wasn't that Historia didn't want such affection, she felt that she needed it after all.

But it was Eren.

He had never been the type to display such open affection.

Historia could see it in his eyes, just like always.

He was on the brink of destruction once again.

So soon, only around 4 months since that day in the cave.

But he kept holding on this time.

He wasn't chained to the world and could move freely if even a littl –

'_Oh… that's it…'_ Historia thought, belittling herself quickly for doubting her first instincts when it came to Eren. _'… Eren knows now… that's why…'_

The answer to what lay beyond the ocean.

He had finally realised the truth he had been trying to fly away from this whole time.

Trying to fly away… to someplace far away… to the land beyond the sky and the clouds reflecting the colours of the sea of sapphires and topaz stones…

But he wasn't going to find it.

Eren knew that for sure now.

But he was grasping onto a faint lingering broken fragment of a wish. Wishing that reality was not as he had seen.

But he knew the truth now, yet still stubbornly tried to hold onto an old dream like an old, dying man after a long life of pain grasping at an ancient memory as he lay down on his death bed.

He wanted to hold onto something which made up the quickly crumbling foundations of his identity.

He had to.

He didn't want to be empty again.

Historia knowingly closed her eyes and shuffled deeper into the warmth of Eren's chest. He brought his arms together around her and tucked her in, keeping her close.

For both her and him, he held on tightly.

The last of his foundations would crumble soon.

Reaching out, trying to hold onto something before they did.

Historia had knowingly, and of her own free will and desire, decided to grasp at his flaying hand.

She decided to create the new foundations of his life herself, just as he had done for her.

She accepted that task 3 weeks ago. The reason why she did had been obvious. The reason why he had confessed to her was obvious.

But too absorbed into the moment, she had not registered just how deeply his desperation was running.

She knew it now. Just how much he was on the brink of collapse. Just how much the gap left my the old dream, she had to fill.

…

Historia wasn't going to let him down.

She was going to show him the new path to follow. She'd drag him if she had to. She'd carry him if she had to.

Feeling her hand over his clothed chest, beneath which laid his faint beating heartbeat in the early morning, she vowed it on her life and feelings.

…

This was it.

This was exactly what she had longed for.

There could be nothing more perfect than it.

…

She was glad she realised it today.

It may have been both the first and the most happiest Birthday of her life.

But more importantly, it was the most valuable Birthday of both their lives.

Both wrapped in the blanket knitted of motherly love.

* * *

**Also god… I hate Alma/Historia's mom, and I refuse to even try and give her a good light, just ugh… I can't… not this bitch… my teeth were literally falling out as I wrote her scene, but yeah… that was Historia's 'Birth Day' after all so I felt it might do some contrast things… but ugh, someone write an AU where Eren smashes her face in pls, but obviously don't because Eren's hands need to be put to some other use. (Hand holding obviously, duh! What were you thinking I meant?!)**

**Just to clarify, it's not known what the canonical case is for birthday and the such in AoT and I'm mainly going by general history stuff and what's available, and so have basically gone with the idea of presents for birthdays only happening at this point in time in you-know-where for manga readers. And seeing the memories of people over in you-know-where, Frieda is just the one to decide to get along with that tradition and bring gifts for her family since they can actually afford it. **

**For the purposes of this fic, within the walls, they currently don't give gifts for people's birthdays (although I guess they would for 'reaching of adulthood' and 'achievement occasions' like that) but yeah, Historia is going to change that from now on! Off-screen probably but meh, might do a reference back to it somewhere perhaps for Eren's birthday but we'll see!**

**And ending scene:**

* * *

"Historia…" Eren moaned her name as he felt her warmth slip away for a moment before coming back to him again.

Morning had come. The whole land was covered in plain white snow, that gently continued to fall slowly over time.

Eren mumbled satisfied when the warmth of his Historia came back, along with a small blanket cradled at her breast.

"Shh, I know, I love you too, but –" Historia whispered back before pointing to the door and reminding him of the guards still probably outside.

"Sorry…" Eren apologised, not too bothered about it anyway, but keeping quiet all the same, "I'll… if word gets out, I'll… face whatever happens and protect you no matter wh–"

"Me too," she says in return and looks upwards into his face as he still held her back closely in his chest, "I want to enjoy this for now…you being here is far more important for now… so don't bother saying stuff like that… actually don't –"

"Sorry, yeah… I won't say stuff like that again…" Eren nodded and held her just a little bit more tightly. He looked down into the sleeping swan and grew concerned for a moment.

"It's okay, it's still alive…" Historia reassured him, touching it incredibly softly again. "I can feel it's warm breathing…"

"Where did you find him?" Eren likewise reached down and felt the soft grey feathers.

"Just yesterday when I was walking down the hallway… it was… just there when turned for a moment," she retold Eren what she had seen. "So… I'll get someone's help to take care of him until Winter is over and he's ready to fly again…"

Eren nodded, stroking her hair appreciatively. He leaned over and kissed her, their lips upside down, and causing Historia's nose to get a little squished into Eren's neck.

The little swan wrapped in the blanket was carefully untouched in between both their movements after being switched from one to the other, resting in the almost 16 years old blanket.

They separated for breath and Eren immediately leant down again to kiss her nose in apology, exhaling hot air across her face.

'_I truly… love you Historia…'_ Eren thought longingly.

He wished to shout it out and proclaim it to the whole world without care nor reason.

'… _My little swan maiden…'_


	3. Fragment 3 - Eren's Birthday

**Summary: Going into disguise as Krista, Historia is working for a short period in order to get the money for Eren's birthday on the 30th March. That's basically it. **

**Note on Spoilers: No explicit manga spoilers in this chapter, although there will be some hinting at a few, details are not revealed so spoiler free in essence since it would only maybe affect your opinions on the basement reveal perhaps? - Unlikely even that but just so you don't say that I didn't warn you! Very minor hinting in essence despite the heaps they learnt, nothing here is revealed, same as previous chapter.**

**This time a 2 months late tribute to mai boi's birthday… I'm the master of deadlines! **

**Also like in the previous chapters, they lose the AoT seriousness vibe towards the end and with this one… basically do not take this one seriously at all, it's mainly just light-hearted for the sake of a bit of fun, even though it's supposed to fit in the imagised route of the main fic, but yeah.**

"speech"

_'thoughts'_

* * *

**Fragment 3 - 'Herzlichen Glückwunsch zum Geburtstag, Eren!'**

**Early Spring of the Year 851 – End of the First Month**

An Angel in this world was not a title given easily when it was only recently that mankind was on the brink of extinction and unity was a fragile concept.

It was still progressing slowly, but it had been almost half a year since the enemy had been driven back once more, and people had once more began moving out to the great land again, for either room, work or wealth.

The great road from Trost to Shinganshina was almost finished and by the end of the year, the ambition was to wipe out famine within Wall Rose completely.

Or so, that was the latest claim that had been passing through the newspapers out from the royal capitol.

A Queen's job and an Angel's job was completely different. There would always be someone at the top of reality, and there was never such a pure entity that existed outside of fiction and stories.

An existence which shines across the whole world and makes everyone's lives infinitely better.

An Angel that came down from heaven.

It was not meant literally, however the rumour had spread fast across the innermost circles within Wall Sina's most prosperous city of Mithras.

The capitol had a number of expensive inns, taverns and cafés. The biggest restaurants that had been managed by companies likely for the past century, were well known to the aristocracy who often dined there, and other citizens who could manage to afford it.

When something of note changes in one of the biggest three establishments, the news gets spread quickly through class and rank.

"Welcome to 'Mädchen Klischeehaus', dear customer!" The blonde haired angel shone a smile, before pointing the way in to the group of a couple dozen men and women who arrived as a whole group.

"Hmph, the place seems a lot more lively. You look lovely dear," one lady said, flashing her a motherly grin as she stopped to talk in front of that certain blonde maid who seemed to shine above all the others. The more pleasant type of customers that the girl had been dealing with recently.

Other men, couples and little groups were trying to get her attention while other waitresses fished them out from the sudden little gathering that joined the noisy din of 'Mädchen Klischeehaus', probably the busiest establishment in all of Mithras at this moment.

"Why thank you ma'am. Have you maid a reservation for this afternoon?" the fake girl asked her typical question, with a little bit more comfort than usual.

The middle aged woman gave her name and she was led to her assigned table quickly before making her order for some expensive tea and cheesecake.

"Sure thing! It will be with you shortly!" the small maid bowed before swiftly walking away to the kitchens and pinning down the order in front of the worker who seemed to be brightened up by her fake smile somehow and his face practically read 'marry me' from the brief encounter.

The maid hit her snort deep inside, just as expected from both the workers and visitors to this whole job.

While the entire place was filled with plenty women that would be considered beautiful, pretty, cute and so forth. Young and sweet, mature and seductive.

Young and innocent, mature and sexy, with the middle ground being just pretty cute young-adults who just needed the extra dough. A restaurant ran entirely by women to charm the eyes of anyone who would enter, no matter their preference in looks. Or for those who just liked maid outfits.

The entire room was buzzing with life, conversation and other positive noises of delight. Mostly. It was the lunch hour and the place was quickly going from three quarters full to four fifths in a blink of the eye.

All the various maids were rushing around, careful and swift from practiced focus, as they took orders, brought foods and chatted with all the customers.

And yet… the whole room seemed to lighten up to another intensity as soon as she stepped back in and the focus came upon her.

Her blonde hair, blue eyes and pale skin were emphasized by the powerful, dark colour of the uniform that seemed to generate suck in all light and focus upon her, and even give her a halo above her head and little pure white feather wings at her back like some beautiful angel of death.

A fake imitation that absorbed everyone's eyes onto her, like a divine and sacred being from far beyond the world.

She wished to just toss it all apart and go back to acting naturally, instead of forced smiles that fooled everyone. Or perhaps they simply didn't care.

But she couldn't do so yet. Continuing on with her once abandoned act, she carried out the tray which held various complex dishes whose arouma bullied her.

Right now, she was 'Krista'.

And she would have to stay that way until it was time.

She was wearing a black goth dress with a white small white apron over the top that had bright white edges and string that tied it together, and was somehow perfect on her despite the incompatibility to other workers.

Her hair was in two drills to the sides in the style of regal ringlets or princess curls that she hoped would play a considerable part in hiding her, along with a fluffy bonnet hat with a tied ribbon on top which was tied tightly and heated up on top of her head when she was indoors.

It was by all means, just another maid dress but much more frilly and of a mostly black colour compared to the lighter bright shades that the others were wearing. Her form was emphasized a little more than she would like but she remained fully clothed with no skin showing.

"Hey lil' miss, mind keeping me company tonight?" A man waved her over, smoking puffs from his cigarette, as she told him his meal had arrived.

Historia forced the fake smile that somehow managed to fool people while holding back from vomiting as heads turned her way expectedly. "No thank you. I have more important things to attend to than babysitting you."

Some people blinked a little, whispering instantly at her attitude and that the customer was going to complain for her behaviour. But instead.

"R-Right, some other time may-" the man instead had a faint blush and crawled into himself a little wounded. Yet for some reason, he seemed to enjoy the rejection. Like a great many other people for some weird reason that Historia wasn't going to stick around to find out.

'_Unless Eren likes it as well…'_ she contemplated it a little. Why was it that half the people turned quiet and downhearted while the other half looked upon her in even greater delight after she put her foot down? Maybe she should find out to know how to tell the signs that Eren might like her taking charge.

"Hey, sweetie. Care to bring me another glass of wine?"

"I'll have the b-bill please, a-and can you have takeouts here?"

"Hey, my order is taking forever! Check my table for me, would y… um… or just… sit with me for a little?"

Requests and shouts from all directions called to her attention. People wishing to spend a little time int the company and light of the pure angel to lift their souls.

"Coming right up!" Moving like a ballerina, she danced around the large hall and fished the demands from the kitchen and handled every single thing thrown her way.

"Sorry to keep you waiting!" she sang each time before gracefully moving like some kind of female soldier. She poured the glass of drink in the blink of an eye, smacked the bill onto the table after pointing to the sign that had 'no takeouts' written in capitals, and brought the late order.

Other waitresses strolled around her to serve their own customers on the finely decorated floor tiles with welcoming and sweet smiles that somehow weren't nearly as effective as the newest maid.

Many became distracted and looked at awe at the girl who had introduced herself as 'Krista Lenz' not so long ago.

She was by background, an amateur, yet her movements spoke years of experience and dedication in acting around people, multi-tasking dexterity and somehow unexpected vigour for her body frame.

And there was something else unique about her, along with the countless other unusual features she possessed.

A sense of strong will that somehow made it look like the job was merely a stepping stone for her.

The other maids had been told by the suddenly very pleased manager who went on boasting about their new sales every day and how the new Krista was like a god-sent.

News spread naturally fast and some of the older maids couldn't deny a strong sense of jealousy and would rather she disappear just as suddenly as she came.

Continuing on and stomaching their wishes, they all tried to mimic her example welcoming the influx of customers with their most welcoming smiles, somehow more genuine than the new girl's yet painfully less effective.

What did she have that they didn't? Acting all sweet before then suddenly denying the customers their wishes was against the protocol they had spent years following.

Mocking customers meant the death penalty here, yet the new girl was able to dance around all that in style.

Continuing their way around the tables in the proper way they were told, doing absolutely whatever their customers desired.

A brunette maid was carrying a tray with a pot filled with tea and several cups ready as she passed their newest member, staring at her uncertainly.

Why did she get away with whatever she said at just the right level of control and intensity to make people back off and somehow make them pleased?

"Kyaa!" a shriek run out in her ears nearby. Only as the brunette maid hit the ground did she realize that it was coming out of her own voice.

The heart shattering burst from porcelain hitting the ground and scattering all over the place just as hot scolding tea landed all over the place, burning her hand which it splattered, a large part of her uniform as soon as she fell down, and worst of all, on the already angry looking husband and wife pair who she was meant to be serving with it.

"Hey! You spilled it all over the place!" the middle aged husband stood up outraged, noticing how some had soaked into his socks already and ruined his shoes.

"What is the matter with you?!" The wife, or perhaps it was a twin sister with how well she copied the same exact expression and movements, likewise stood up.

"I-I'm so sorry!" The young brunette tried to get up while keeping her head bowed, only to slip again, her ankle hurting as though she had been tripped over. Trying to collect herself, she thought she heard some accompanied sneering from somewhere but forgot about it immediately. "Sir, madam, p-please let me…"

"Don't speak back to me after what you've done! You've ruined my shoes! Do you know how much they cost me?!" The angry customer waved a fist at her threateningly but made no attempt to actually hit her, scoffing down at her. "Well?! Clean this up and fetch me your manager!"

"Y-Yes sir…" The brunette maid hastily nodded, mumbling apologies and trying to think of what she should say now. Her lips trembled and no words could be formed. Picking up the tray again, she quickly began picking the broken ceramic pieces.

"Ah-" She dropped the piece again and it broke into another two smaller parts. She had cut herself rather deeply and a blob of blood was quickly surfacing out through her skin on two finger that had held the sharp edge.

Her hands shook however much she tried to clear the broken pieces up from the floor that seemed endless while the couple whom she had been serving where making a show of her mistake and the entire room's disappointed attention felt focused on her.

"… Dammit… why me… " She mumbled. "…Why me..."

Picking up at the tiny pieces of the broken cup or kettle, still with hot tea burning her fingers a little, she realising how it was an impossible task to pick up all the broken bits back on the tray alone.

"Hey, calm down," a voice whispered to her, appearing out of nowhere and suddenly a carpet sweeper was placed down next to the brunette maid.

Looking up, she saw the enviable angel herself kneeling down to help her. The shattered pieces didn't cut her at all when she skilfully and swiftly picked up multiple pieces and collected them without hesitation.

A simple task, that seemed to only be able to be performed by the divine being that was much too young to be acting so calm and experienced.

"… Thank… you…" Her feeble mumble was practically inaudible but the blonde maid picked it up and for some reason, smiled, while appearing somehow very different all of a sudden and more genuine.

The whispers continued in the crowds, mocking her bungle at the rather prestigious gathering. But they felt a little easier when being helped through it.

They had cleared up eventually, and carried the tray of broken pieces while another maid had quickly acted on her behalf and brought the customer's request.

After Historia had seen the accident, she had grabbed the shoulder of another maid that had been passing by and advised her to prepare table 37's order at once before helping the brunette maid clean up and threw the door.

In a moment, the blonde maid was back, gracefully dancing across the lavishly decorated interior again as though nothing had happened a moment before.

Passing on with the next plate of fish and some sort of potato and other assortments vegetables she had never seen even in the palace. Not that her meals were anything but exceptional.

'_Maybe I shouldn't investigate more if Eren likes them…'_ she thought while laying down another meal, giving a bright smile and noticing a table that someone had left without being cleaned. And without a bill. Ignoring her concerns, she picked the plates up while dabbling in her thoughts, _'my hands are kinda full, but…'_

"Hey, hey," one of the businessmen whispered over to his companion, seemingly some wealthy lord that had put a number of pounds on his body recently. "Ask that maid for some special service and get her reply."

"Why? She just rejected the fellow a few tables down. She's still a little too young anyway, her b-" Several stacked plates crashed onto the table, cutting the two men sitting opposite each other off, somehow not cracking despite the loud sound it made.

"Is something not to your liking gentlemen?" The blonde maid held a dangerous smile and evidently not pleased at where the discussion was going a moment ago.

"A-Ah, yes… everything's fine," the younger companion replied, sweating nervously all of a sudden, and feeling his heart race with adrenaline. The businessman tapped his foot underneath the table and nodded at him, making him go with the moment. "I mean… um, c-could I get some special service from you tonig-?!"

"You will have to pay someone who would actually endure someone of your reprehensible disposition, if you are so desperate for such company," the dark maid spoke without flinching and turned away without a care.

Again, whispers broke out about what she had just said with no aura of hostility and only a lack of care at such requests. Turning away, Historia walked off with the tray of dishes that needed to be cleaned.

"Ahhhhhh… stone cold rejection…" the younger man seemed happily drained, as though he had enjoyed the stab at his core from a harsh mistress. "… it… feels so good…"

"Right? Told you. Listen, it's the harsh ones that bad-mouth you sweetly and make you feel ashamed that gets going the-"

The lord soaked in every word from his companion who begin explaining how everyone is a masochist on some level and that there was nothing to be ashamed of, and rather should be admired.

"Are you gentlemen perhaps unwell?" an onlooker added into the conversation, not comprehending what he had just witnessed.

"Oh shush, don't judge until you've actually been the one at the end of that defiant look upon her face, spilling out her loathing at you from within and telling you how lowly filth you are without getting maliciously vile … Ahhhh…"

Historia inside felt like killing the whole lot of them. But they would probably love it, given how these people seem to like the dominant, harsh tongue-lashing. On the first day, when she had been suggested for the dinner, she had quite simply kicked the old bastard's chair and toppled it without thinking.

Working in the service industry, even for a short time was far tougher than it seemed. Naturally, the wealthy head of the Zeim-whatever family had started shrieking complaints while she tried to get her act together and apologize profusely, knowing full well she would submit to the consequences.

There was a time when Krista could flawlessly pull it off. Save for a couple of people. But that time had passed now, and she could feel the slightest bit guilty after being oogled for the past evening by that individual and no doubt fantasized in disgusting ways in his mind.

Historia didn't really care about that. People can have whatever fantasies they like and envision some repulsive thought that they might have their pleasurable one time with the Queen and fabricate all sorts of characterless physical copy of her.

Just like Krista, they would only see a cute body who would disrobe to their private quarters and act with whatever out of character behaviour they wished to impose upon the imaginary copy of her to entertain them.

But it wouldn't ever change who she was beneath the image that others saw. What mattered, was the one person still with her that continued to see through her.

So long as he could see it, that was all that mattered.

'_Ugh… I can hardly take it much longer…'_ she thought the same thing every few times each hour, but each time clenched her teeth together and set her mind into gears once more, drawing just enough strength from somewhere to keep going.

She wished Eren was here now, instead of these people.

Actually she didn't, her mind decided quickly.

Sinking back into reality, 'Krista' shone another smile to an elderly couple as she placed down the tray of tea and collected their next meal request.

Just a little longer. She would have earned up enough if she held out a little longer and keep slashing down the requests made at her by more perverse individuals.

A click struck in her mind. Historia couldn't care less about anyone else, but… one person.

Did… Eren fantasize about her? She gulped down the blush as she concluded he did. She fantasized about him, when she… needed to.

For some reason, fantasizing about Eren fantasizing about her suddenly made her body tingle. She bit down and complained slightly how she wanted to see him right now and shook the heat away from her.

"Hey waiter, I'm ready to make an order!" Another man called out to her as she welcomed him with sunshine, making him avert his eyes awkwardly before stuttering out his order.

The bell chime rung again as the doors were opened just as she was heading back towards the kitchens and passed the main door.

"Welcome to th– !"

…

'_AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIeeee-'_

Her stomach sunk inside and then flipped right back. Like a desperate and suddenly fragile animal faced at the barrel of a gun.

Mind overwritten and ablaze, trying to overturn the situation and decide what she would do when caught redhanded somehow. A burglar, robbing her own home.

Of course, there were a few people who she would still consider close to her that were left, but there was only really one person remaining whom would be the absolute worst to run into at a time like this.

Of course it had to be him.

Of course it had to be here, at this time.

Of course it was him.

"…...Eh?" was all he spoke after being frozen at her easily recognizable face to him.

Eren had just walked in.

He blinked and checked her up and down swiftly before being transfixed at her beautiful face, beyond which thousands of curses at him were being fired and at the whole world as plain as day.

Behind him, wearing the same uniform and symbol as him, Jean had strolled in barely a pace after him, looking around and blabbering and pointing things out that she couldn't focus on right now.

"…" Eren opened his mouth and closed it, just as the temperature suddenly shot up at least ten degrees.

* * *

**First Week of**** Spring of the Year 851 – ****Wall Sina Orphanage**

"… _Historia?" The brunet cautiously began, as stopped what he was doing and turned round to catch her attention._

_As it happened, the Queen's attention was already focused fully on him, and for some reason she looked speechless, on the verge of her execution or something similar._

_Eren hesitated when her eyebrow was twitching a few times every second and her teeth looked like they would turn to sand if she crushed them any stronger._

_They were doing the laundry just moments prior. Most of the children were too young, though they were encouraging the elder ones to start trying for themselves in the Queen's absence, they had ended up mostly alone and able to share a few quick kisses while hidden behind the duvets._

_White sheets hung on the lines. A gentle breeze was blowing, making them flutter gently._

_They were now mostly dry but a number still damp after being washed thoroughly until clean like undisturbed white snow._

_The clothes had already been collected in the baskets since they had dried faster, and while Armin and Connie who were accompanying them this time had gone to carry them away, Eren had volunteered to help Historia with the rest._

_Of course to them, that was the signal for a bit of time together. They had traded some playful words before Historia had turned round and pushed something into his chest._

_About a week ago, when they were last doing the washing for the orphans, Eren had gone ahead on Historia's suggestion and added his normal clothes, which he had gotten from Historia herself a while back, into the washing pile that day._

_For some reason, he hadn't seen his dark brown longcoat with the hoodie all week and had ended up with just his tunic, not that he noticed until this morning since he hardly got the chance to wear casual clothing like that._

_Historia had just handed it back just a moment ago and he had flung it around his back while pulling his arms through a sleeve and trying to catch the other with one swish through the air._

_Just as he had done so, he noticed there was something wrong. "Historia…? Why's it so small? I can't fit it on without ripping the sleeve…"_

_He considered if it had shrunk during washing as he had heard happen on occasion but the guilty face hiding anguished screams of death told him the culprit may be a certain someone._

_This wasn't his longcoat, and it felt almost brand new despite being seemingly identical in shape and style, but way too small for him._

"_Historia…?" He questionably hissed her name again, to the still alarm struck blonde that seemed to be panicking for some silly reason. He wasn't mad at all. It was basically a gift from her to him. "What happened to my jacket…?"_

"_A-Ah… i-it just…" the culprit's head turned dizzy and Eren prepared to catch her if she looked like she was about to fall, "w-woah… l-look how much you've grown suddenly…."_

"_Uhh, yeah… a little…" Eren pulled out the one sleeve he had managed to get into and hung the small-ish jacket over his forearm, "but not enough that I can't even fit into this… Historia, what happened to it?"_

"_N-Nothing! It just looks small, but it's definitely the same coat you had before!" she suddenly turned away, and grabbed the basket only half full with sheets, turned around swiftly and marched past Eren._

_Eren sighed, seeing that he would have to collect the rest himself. Folding the new jacket, unsure what to do with it, he suddenly noticed a blonde slivers of hair coming back towards him. Historia was marching back to him._

"_Hey, His- OWW!" The Queen stomped on his foot hard, before turning back round and leaving him again._

* * *

**3 Weeks Later – Mädchen Klischeehaus**

Historia had fortunately taken the time out of her morning to style her hair into the two princess ringlets that just brushed on either one of her shoulders, while her front was parted a little differently than usual.

It wasn't any big change in style but combined with the frilly maid cap with a bow, the additional brush of cosmetics that she had applied to her face and the expressions and movements of her face and body that she had been paying careful attention to, Historia had hoped that most people wouldn't remember the young Queen who they only saw on less than half a dozen occasions thus far at best.

If by misfortune she would start getting suspected, she hoped to act in the suitable fashion for her background and even spin a partially true, partially fake story of her origins.

Historia had tried to go for as mature of a look as possible and believed at least that people would think she was at least 5 years older than she actually was, just as she had submitted on her request before she was quickly tested and granted a particularly positive review and so had been accepted for the short period.

Being careful of the way she acted and the vibe she got off, Historia had hoped she would be able to manage a few days as long as she kept her head turned away to questioning gazes.

Though everyone's focus seemed to be on her, she felt they were thankfully more distracted with how noticeable her black clothing was against the mainly bright red walls than whom she might resemble a little.

She had almost made it the whole month.

Until he had to walk in on her at this moment.

"..."

"..."

Eren scrutinized her closely, seeing the movement in the light of his eyes as he put together what was going on. Mostly at least.

"Oi, Eren, move, I wanna get a table fast," the third voice interrupted them in the end and brought their silent eye talk to an end.

The Titan shifter nodded and opened his mouth to address her but suddenly stopped again. He considered what he should actually say in such an obvious situation and wondered why she looked so cute right now. It was more of the latter really.

"O-Oh right this way!" 'Krista' suddenly jumped in again, waving them to follow her and a fake smile that Jean glanced away from to blush slightly. "Table for two?"

"I don't want to sit with this guy if I can avoid it," Jean countered and fell silent as he stepped around and started checking out the waitress. Eren didn't say anything.

"Ow, why are you hitting me?" the brunet let his gaze drop from the blonde for a moment when his companion elbowed him.

"Say 'me too' or something idiot," he whispered fiercely back, "or what? Where you so charmed by the cute waitress just now?"

Eren blinked, and looked back at Historia, who looked away, and started observing the room for a place for them to sit, not answering Eren.

"Huuuh?!" Eren craned his neck back at Jean, pointing at her, "Jean, don't me you don't recognize…"

"What? Is she someone you… we know?" the taller soldier suddenly began studying the blonde waitress intensely with squinted eyes. "Hey, um… Miss, have we met before…?"

Blonde hair. Blue eyes. Very small.

'_Hey… wait a minute…'_ Jean scrutinized her closely while rattling his head onto some recognizable itch.

"Nope, I don't believe we have!" the pretty maid beamed a shine that radiated sunshine and made Jean take a step back and instantly forget what he was thinking about.

"O-Oh, well I'm pleased to m…" Jean let his sentence draw on as he glanced at his companion. Eren was glaring at him for some reason. Jean glared back, losing his previous mood instantly at the sudden unnecessary hostility in his view, "Oi, are you going to stand around there all day? Let's hurry before we have to go back."

Eren snorted and turned away after glaring at Jean one last time. Historia cleared her throat, knowing she would have to attend to others soon, before any argument would break out.

"Do you… have a reservation?" She doubted the thought had even crossed Eren's mind. His expression a moment later said just as much.

"Erm, no... You're not too busy today, are you?" Jean looked equally thoughtless to it, looking around and waving to a few spare tables, "we won't be long. We just need an hour to stick around. There's some business we'll have to attend to at the Royal Capitol with Her Majesty herself you see."

"Well, isn't that splendid!" She pressed her eye together and clapped her hands sweetly, as if admiring his service. Eren continued staring at her blankly. It hurt for some reason. "We do have some free spaces anyway that aren't reserved as it happens. Please follow me."

She led waved them along as they passed by all the other maids tending to the customers, many of whom turned to Historia as they passed while the waitresses greeted Eren and Jean in with short bows, the latter who gleamed his teeth at them all.

Now, compared to the past, the Survey corpsmen would be noticed and even acknowledged positively as the heroes who brought back Wall Maria.

The lives and expenses the Survey Corps had used up had now provided the results people so long desired. It was more than regaining their ground with the new territory, they were now able to proceed forwards and the entire threat of Titan existence was now on the verge of waning away.

Even assimilating territory beyond even Wall Maria was not such a distant dream. Combined with military rule, the Survey Corps was held in high regard as the saviours of humanity.

Arriving at a table at the corner, just big enough for the two of them, squished in close against the wall and other tables around them, it was clear why nobody would reserve these.

They were also the only open seats around besides the ones that had a card on them that said 'reserved', so there was no room for complaint.

"Please call me when you're ready to make your order-" the blonde maid was in a hurry to get away, after quickly pulling a chair out for them.

"Actually, we'd like to order now," Jean interrupted while taking the seat that she had, and getting pushed in again.

"O-Oh, certainly!" Historia screamed inside in frustration. She made eye contact with Eren again after she pulled out the second seat for him.

Eren swiftly took it and pulled himself in, without saying anything to his secret courtee in disguise.

"H-Hey, but first… so um… as a maid here, you all say something like 'I will gladly serve you in any way you request, dear master', right?" Eren's mouth fell upon when his companion said it so carelessly and looking up expectedly at the goth maid.

"Nope," she interjected, beaming kindness all the way. Eren's eyes rose and stared at her over his shoulder, picking up on the implication.

"Y-yeah, so… 'no'?" Jean looked puzzled, like a child being promised his favourite treat if he behaved and then not getting it after coming home.

"Nope, I do not serve **you** in **any** way you request." The air of finality was clear from the goth maid.

The goth maid held her aura which made him unable to speak properly and buckle against her will.

"W-Wait, but… the other time… that's what… " Eren was already starting to get annoyed at the accredited horse face, who looked unnecessary desperate for something so trivial to him.

And not something he wanted her to say to anyone. Unless it was to him. And only him. Then maybe. He was glad at least that the blonde behind him wasn't playing along with Jean at all.

"It was not in the job briefing and you won't have anything like that from me." Still holding the maliciously sweet smile, she asked again. "May I take your order?"

Jean blinked and… suddenly didn't look so disappointed. "A-Ah, well… I l-like girls who are defiant like that…"

"That's a pleasure to hear," her voice was like venom now, no intention in humouring her fellow former trainee. "Shall I return when you're ready to actually order?"

"N-No no, we're ready now, just um…" Jean stumbled, looked away in embarrassment and kicked Eren's leg under the table. "Hey, what're you doing? I told you to order the special omelet I said about."

"I'm checking if it's there or not…" Eren hissed back, having just picked up the menu after the girl still standing behind him had no sign of talking.

"I know it's there, already, just say it," the Survey Corpsman sighed, and turned back to the goth maid with a slightly blush. "We'll have two omelets from the special course an-GAK?! What th- Why did you kick me so hard?!"

"Certainly!" Historia gladly nodded and easily noted it in her head and bowing quickly, before practically dashing away to the kitchen at last.

'_Uhh… Ereeeen… why did you have to show up now…' _Historia sighed as she placed the order and caressed her forehead, knowing he no doubt figured out what she was up to.

* * *

**Quarter of an Hour Later… **

Eyes darting everywhere across the room, both members of the Survey Corps silently listened in on the people around them and sipped gently on the drinks they had ordered from another maid.

Seeing Eren lost in thought and not responding to his attempt at light conversation, Jean was listening in and looking around at all the people there.

Most of them were noblemen ad their families and citizens from various more prospering backgrounds as the usual within the capital.

Then there was another group that stood out to him.

"Can't believe there was a time when I ever wanted to be like them," the taller of the two said, mainly too himself, not expecting the Titan shifter to catch it.

"Huh?" To his surprise, he did. Eren looked to where Jean was nodding and saw a group of men slightly older than them, with the unicorn emblem on their backs.

The young men from the Military Police were quite clearly drunk and had no regard for the dark haired maid who seemed to be trying to clean up and usher them out the door, while instead they made attempts at groping her openly in public.

The woman darted away at least, but the soldiers continued their small games and glaring at the citizens around them, repeatedly saying how they were in charge now without regard for what it could cause.

Their bragging increased in volume and getting the attention of a great many people around them. Apparently it was the new Military Police who reclaimed Wall Maria, shed their blood and saved everyone according to them.

"… You were right." Jean's words certainly reached Eren, but he still had trouble believing they came from him. He looked pensive and simply frowned at the MPs he so wanted to join once. Just at that moment, one of them started raising his fists and feebly threaten someone until a few other people stepped in. "… I don't know what the hell I was ever thinking…"

"Did you just say…" Eren stopped just as Jean snapped his head towards him, realising he had been speaking aloud.

"… S-Shut up! I didn't say anything you bastard!" his former rival claimed, slightly red. He scoffed at something and fell quiet while taking another drink.

Eren smiled a little, not bothered in picking one of their usual quarrels for old time sake. Or rather, it didn't cross his mind at all.

It felt pleasant. Staying silent like this at a table just across from each other was something they would both recoil at and refuse once.

Eren swore he would never say it aloud, but the shared companionship was even slightly enjoyable.

He had tried to get Jean off his backside just this morning, telling him to not waste his time. But right now, he couldn't secretly deny he wouldn't mind hanging around Jean when it was like this.

On the other side of the table, Jean just about had it with acting shy for something he could just said in his head.

"More importantly, you're liking what you see right?" Jean's grin sparked back up in an instant as he changed the conversation topic.

"… What?" Eren coughed and quirked and eyebrow in confusion.

"Come on, just admit it already," crossing his arms, the soldier leaned back and nodded to himself satisfyingly, "I was right to bring you to this place."

"No seriously, what the hell are you talking about now?" Eren took another drink before setting it down and looking around at his companion might be talking about.

Jean sighed, and leaned back on his chair and then forward again, resting his elbows on the table, he crossed his hands together and too a breath.

He smiled and nodded at him. As though he was a man of culture that he acknowledged. The taller of the two opened his eyes and stared at Eren with iron steel seriousness.

"Eren… You have a thing for maids, right?!"

…

"… What?" Eren decided that anything he was thinking earlier about enjoying Jean's company was just a figment of his imagination.

"Come on, don't deny it. You're looking non-stop all over this place," waving his arms at random, he pointed straight at a particular blonde maid who was avoiding them completely and distracting herself with carrying other dishes back to the kitchen once more.

"That's because…" Eren let himself wonder just as his eyes looked at Historia's outfit. He looked at it closely. And looked at it some more. "I'm not."

"Sure you're not. Come on, tell me! It's the maid costumes right? The feeling of getting served? Getting sweet talk where you will not find anywhere else?" He began looking more and more like a feral animal now, almost desperately begging for him to agree. "You understand me right Eren?! You feel it as well, right?!"

"N-No… I don't…" The Titan shifter mustered his strength and refused. He didn't have any feelings like that at all. What was so special about maids all of a sudden?

There was nothing different than wearing work clothes but for a different job. Eren didn't see any appeal whatsoever.

Zoning Jean out, he imagined it again. Historia. And the dress she was wearing. Pitch black clothing with cutesy frills while her face beamed starshine with contempt buried behind her.

Acting… just like Krista.

"T-Thanks for w-waiting…" The bright yet uncertain cheery voice disturbed them again. Holding a tray on her arm, Historia skillfully moved the two plates off and laid them quickly in front of the two men.

She was sweating a little, from both running around and mental turmoil. Then placed the tray beneath her arm after taking off the remaining bottle on the tray.

Eren stared at it. He had never seen anything like it. It looked way to fluffy to be like any omelet he had ever seen, and made of some kind of grain mixed in that he had not seen before.

"A-Allow me t-to put a m-magic spell on your omelet…" Jean was sitting happily with his arms folded, looking excited as Historia flipped the lid of what looked like some sort of red sauce, similar in colour to tomatoes.

The Titan shifter watched the pattern formed as a result, which Jean had closed his eyes to witness. It was done at such a fast speed that he could hardly follow anyway.

"Please, enjoy!" The confirmation that it was ready was given and Jean opened his eyes to look at the shape of a… pony.

"… Huh?" He looked at the maid and back at it again. It looked more like a stick figure of something on 4 legs than anything, but he was pretty sure it was meant to be a pony, "a-ah, shouldn't I get a… heart shape? Y-You know like… s-showing your heart in m-my meal…?"

"That's what I did." Making no room for argument, the goth maid smiled and told him to start eating. Nodding awkwardly, and once more, not satisfied for some reason, Jean began eating without complaint, immediately lost in delight from the first taste.

Historia stepped over to Eren. Avoiding his gaze again, she slowly squeezed the bottle again, and let the string of sauce drop while moving her hands to form the shape.

It curved. Halfway done, the curve was clearly wide and clear at the top, and of a much lesser incline at the bottom. Eren felt his heart ache a little, wanting to speak up to Historia who looked nervous around him. He decided to still go along with it, awaiting her to completely her gesture.

Then the sauce spilled right over Eren.

"Aaah?!" He tried to move out of the way of the shooting sauce that fell out, splattering over his trousers suddenly.

"Eee-!" Snapping out her daze, she suddenly realised that she was still squeezing and the sauce had drawn a line off the plate and the table and straight out and onto Eren. "I-I'm s-so sorry!"

Flipping it over and around and placing it on the table, she grabbed a cloth immediately, and ended up dropping the tray with a loud clatter on the floor.

"I-It's fine…" Eren immediately insisted, wiping it off himself with the napkins provided at the table. It was all over his trousers in a few red collections which he tried brushing off gently to avoid soaking into his clothes.

Ignoring Jean's open mouth stare, Eren reached down to clean it off. Just as his hand touched the gentle pale skin of his secret lover.

Their eyes instantly met. Their faces were inches apart and one of her side ringlets was brushing across his face.

She had reached down to wipe it off herself as she had made the mess after all. Turning away her embarrassed face, Historia crouched down a little more without commenting to clean his trousers at once.

Her hand landed on his crotch.

"A-AH, sorry!" her voice screeched out in fear and ashamed, instantly moving her hand away and furiously scrubbing off the liquid from his thick, muscular, juic- thighs, trying to get as much of the red stain out as possible.

"I-It's fine, I-I can take care of it, jus- Ah?!" Eren had tried to grab her forearm gently and move her away. Historia resisted instantly and pushed him off and tried to get the remaining off on his other leg.

Only to land her hand on his crotch again.

"AAHHHH?!" she squeaked again. She could feel people's eyes on her right now, countless pairs. Her shaking hand scrubbed off as much as she could, quivering as she looked at Eren's flushed face.

Her mind buzzed from numerous feelings. How she suddenly was right in Eren's private space in public. What she actually looked like she was doing while leaning down her small body into his lap and moving her hand furiously. And why, when she accidentally touched Eren in a certain place for the second time, did something feel growing much bigger.

* * *

**In the Kitchens…**

Her face resting upon the desk barely a moment later, unable to move from the beating red blood soaring at a thousand kilometres a second through her.

She couldn't even remember what she had just done after that. Losing her composure for the first time since she started, she had made an absolute mess of Eren's clothing and dinner. She hadn't even been able to complete the heart shape she wanted to draw.

"Excuse me, Miss Lenz?" the voice of a middle aged lady spoke, shaking her shoulder lightly.

"Oh, y-yes ma'am?" Quickly getting up and sorting herself out, she looked up to find her employer.

She was the wife of the manager of the establishment, and the person who hired her quickly after suddenly asking her to try on a few costumes that she couldn't stop flattering her about how they suited her. "Is there a problem with the customers at that table you were just at?"

"E..." Historia paused and went into focus. Krista replied again, "n-not particularly."

"Right," she looked unconvinced, "would it be better if I assigned you to someone else?"

"Oh…" The thought hadn't occurred to her. Backing down from the sudden visitor in particular, wasn't something she felt she could do.

But… it wouldn't have been too hard to just keep pretending to be distracted and ask someone else to serve Eren and Jean's table. And pour sauce into a heart shape on his lunch. For Eren. And whisper sweet things to him.

Knowing that, she had immediately grabbed the plate without thinking and gone ahead. But that was over and done with, and no other worker would bother her Eren with stupi-… no other worker would have to deal with Jean and get a headache.

Some part of her felt silly that she had to hide away from the one she thoroughly believes she could be completely open with. It was one of the reasons why she truly loved him.

But…

Historia breathed in and placed her hand at her chest. The pulsating heart refused to drop a single beat.

… She needed to focus on the actual job right now.

"Um… yes ma'am," steadying herself and putting on her sweet, concerned tune, Krista answered, "I think it would help if I swapped with someone else."

"Very well, please see to the gentleman at table 6 over there please," the woman nodded and signaled over to a table by the window.

As it happened, the clearly aristocratic, wealthy customer was staring at her, and waved at her, seemingly familiar with her. _'Oh great… an__other__ admirer.' _She thought she vaguely remembered him.

Swallowing down her wishes to just forget it all, she went ahead and greeted the newcomer. Having managed to put up with him, she was on her way back through the room a few minutes later, carrying a stack of finished plates that she had picked up n her way back from another table.

It was mainly the fact that it was hardly 10 minutes that made her freeze in her place just before she entered the side door.

"A-Ah, K-Krista, I… t-thank you for earlier, when y-you… u-um…" a brunette maid had suddenly been about to leave through the kitchen door in which her now little co-worker was standing.

She had been helped by the kind girl just earlier, when nobody else had come up to give her aid. The brunette maid made an attempt to confidently thank the maid who was referred to as Krista between them.

"Hiiiiiii?!" Instantly however, when she saw the expression on the usually cute girl's face, she bottled down in terror. "I-I-Is s-something w-w-w-w-w-wrong…?!"

"**Who…**** is that?**" Death incarnate spoke.

She truly acted like an angel of death earlier, whom possessed some comforting kindness. Now however, it was clear that the mad glinting face of pure enchained rage belonged the devil herself.

"Eek! K-Kri… M-Miss… Lenz?" Suddely fearing for her life, the brunette maid wasnt ao sudden about her earlier saviour right now.

"**Who. ****I****s. ****T****hat. ****Sssserving? At. That. Table?**"

Every word was punched in like they were each worth a liftime of seeking revenge.

The brunette maid followed her finger to a table squeezed in the corner for two. There were two Survey Corpsman sitting there, one with light brown hair and pretty tall, though his facial features seemed more like a pony than a person, and another with dark brown hair and… a cute mix of attractiveness.

And, next to the latter brunette, at which his companion was gawking, was a beautiful dark haired maid, a senior who she would never have the courage to speak to, who had her arm wrapped around the attractive man, and… was squeezing his arm right between her great mountains.

"Y-You agreed to swap with them just a minute ago, r-remember…?" the brunette quaked a bit and felt she should have bit her tongue instead of saying anything.

The blonde maid had lost all innocent adroableness and was replaced with blood drowning ire of some beautiful demon queen.

"**Ohohohohohoho…**** is that so… you're saying I told someone to start touching the customers to familiarly?**" Her eyes were red and twitcing like mad.

She loked like a beast about to lunch herself and strangle someone in front if her. As it happened, the brunette maid was the ine dirctly in front of her.

"N-N-No! I-I didn't say anything like t-that…" she was practically begging for mercy for some reason, "p-please be at ease Miss L-Lenz, our senior there is jus-"

"**Ohoho... senior in bust developmnt you say...**"

"I-I didn't say anything like that! Eek... just in a-age, she's just d-doing it the way she was taught t-" she squaled back at the goth maid.

"**The way she was taught to be an unrefined strumpet?**"

"I-I, n-no! It's n-not what you t-think Miss Lenz, I... um... look!" the brunette maid almost died inside when she realised she had taken the strangely angry girl's shoulder and pointed her back to the table, racking her brain for something to salvage her, "s-see? Our senior is j-just being friendl- polite! P-Polite w-with helping that customer with the Survey Corps sign t-to show him... how to... the best way to eat the dish, see M-Miss Lenz!"

Indeed, the mature senior with an indrecidly attractive complexion, which was making the other Survey Corps soldier across the table gawk and appear annoyed, was just holding the dark brunette's customer's spoon and talking to him friendidly... while invading just a little bit of his private space and making him look a bit uncomfortable.

And then she scooped up some more of the omlette rice and held it up to the man's mouth, about to feed him.

"A-a-a-ahhhhhh..." The brunette maid was backing away slowly. The blonde maid's face was frozen but her whole body was shaking on the spot. The plates she held began cracking from the force, splitting into two as she now saw some woman who had the audacity to lean right into her lover's ear, pretend like personal space no longer mattered and whisper something which she giggled at next to him.

"M-M-Miss L-Lenz, p-please calm d-down..." making one last attempt before cowering away, the brunette maid peaked from behind the door. The named maid turned to face her and smiled as sweetly as painfully possible.

"I'm completely calm, I just need to swoot away a fly quickly," her eyes closed and smile stretched obviously fake, the girl left for a certain destination.

The brunette maid hid for cover as she watched the development play out from around the door, hearing complaints already coming for her to get back to work. She paid no attention since she ralised only insane people worked in the service industry. Mom was wrong, and starting tommorow she was going to become a libarian.

* * *

**A Few Minutes Ago…**

Eren smashed down another mouthful of food. He guessed it tasted okay. He didn't really care.

"Psst, hey you know that sweet blonde chick." Eren smashed down his spoon onto the plate once more, ripping up another mix of egg, cheese and whatever that weird fluffy grain was which he couldn't tell.

"So small and cute… I wonder if she notices I exist?"

His spoon dug in and ripped out a unbefittingly large amount before stuffing it into his face.

"Don't be stupid, she focused on me the most and gave me the biggest smile!"

Metal struck against the plate as he stabbed the spoon down again hard.

"She's like an angel of death… I want her to punish me…"

The metal spoon literally snapped. It didn't even remember to bend, the metal just snapped.

He tried focusing on something else, other than what had just happened and was getting whispered through at the tables nearby, the Survey Corps soldiers now being the focus in the room after the incident.

"Hey, hey, the cruel maid beauty is moving again, I wish she wore some more revealing clothes or a shorter skirt…"

The table shook and cracks formed in it from an unusual aura, shrinking in size as if it had come alive from fear.

Eren stared and looked closely at her as she walked to a nobleman at the table near the window who looked to be very friendly with her. The jarring contrast between her deep black clothing with her pale white skins and her luscious blonde hair and the perfect eyes and the tender pink lips he had sucked the life from a number of times to both their pleasure and the slightly darker than usual eyelashes and the white strings just below her breasts and the reflecting shoes and the cute black neckband and the double frills and th-

"HEY, I SAID I'M TALKING TO YOU," Jean yelled, with a mixture of annoyance and fear.

"Eh- Huh, what?" Regaining his composure and surroundings, he asked simply.

"Eren," Jean opened his mouth slowly and then nodded towards a blonde maid "who is that girl?"

…

"…" He stared dumbly at his former rival.

He studied Jean's unchanging face closely and then realised what he had just asked.

Eren turned round to where his Historia was _still_ being bothered by some random guy, when she would much rather be getting kissed hard against the wall by him right n-… when she would much rather spend some time in his company while they both stared disbelievingly at how dumb Jean was right now.

"Hey, answer me you bastard, where did you meet her, hah?!" Jean seriously appeared to not be able to tell. Unable to even recognize a girl he once recalled him mentioning was like a goddess to him.

Just like everyone else around him. Eren decided he would never figure out how the cadets had such bad taste.

"Jean…" Eren rubbed his forehead in exasperation. He knew that the accredited horse-face had more eyes for someone else, or at least in the past he certainly had some clear desire, but it was still disappointing. "… Do you serious not-"

"Afternoon, handsome masters!" A suddenly tall, exceptionally attractive young woman suddenly appeared, her voice sweet as honey and innocent music to their ears.

They had been interrupted by a dark haired beauty, that oozed maturity and had maximized her sex appeal to the limit with thick glossy lipstick and a clear show of her skin at some places, not to mention her very large... assets.

Not that Eren was looking, it was just a little hard to not notice when they were practically bouncing in his face.

"Is your food to you satisfaction?" The seductive voice laid a honey trap again. Jean looked like he had already gotten trapped in it, the first time round, and just nodded dumbly.

The bountiful maid looked between the two and then suddenly set her eyes on Eren. The Titan shifter looked carefully away, trying to get back to his lunch.

Until the woman slid right into the seat next to him.

"What th- what're you doing?!" Eren panicked, having his seat invaded and suddenly just getting leaned on by this random girl.

"Hmm, I'm just providing you company and warmth, m-a-s-t-e-r~" the black haired seductress licked her lips as Eren quickly got freaked out. He heard the clatter of Jean's spoon falling onto his plate while Eren leaned away.

"I-I'd rather if you didn't..." he tried to say. Why had this woman suddenly taken an interest in him?

"Hmm, why's that? Do you have someone already, dear customer?" Not moving back an inch, she instead grabbed his arms out of nowhere upon noticing the affirmative in his eyes. "Just forget about her for now, this is just a little fun! You came into a restaurant where only maids serve for a reason right? Here... You can touch me however much you like for today..."

Eren stomach physically recoiled. He tried pulling his arm away but the woman held onto it tight, and suddenly pulled his arm in-between her breasts. He grimaced at her, honestly repulsed at what was going on, especially considering Historia was literally in the same room as him.

Even if he wasn't in a relationship with Historia, he wasn't comfortable with this sort of thing, nor into starting relations like this.

"No thanks, I'm not interested," he replied, unpeeling her fingers with his spare hand and brushing her away.

The woman blinked, surprised. And then her smile grew ever more uncomfortably devilish. "Ho? Aren't you clearly infatuated with whoever you are with..."

Jean was still watching them, blinking back and forth. The female maid still sat right next to Eren, pressing her thighs against him. She grabbed the spoon which Eren had dropped and began twirling it in between her fingers.

"Say... my husband works with the government... I heard that the Survey Corps has less than a dozen members now?" the battering eyelashes and sharp eyes, "among which there is of course that Titan boy... Eren Jaeger was it?"

Neither of the two soldiers revealed anything, avoiding her discerning eyes and playing as they were meant to. On no account was the fact that Eren was right here meant to be revealed, whenever they were taking turns acting as his escort.

"He'd be an acquaintance of yours, right?" the woman turned sharply onto the Titan shifter himself. "You know... I'd be pleasured to meet him... very much so... and I'm sure both you and him would feel much the same."

Eren still didn't speak, and Jean no longer seemed a flustered mess now. The woman sighed, and then went so scoop up another piece of the omelette from his place.

"Or, is it that there's some issue with that? He's become pretty popular around here. The hero who drove out the Titans... and I hear instead of being rewarded, he was locked up for a while after returning... my, my, don't you think a hero like that should be rewarded properly by plenty of eagre attendants~?" the maid leaned into Eren's ear, bringing the spoon towards his mouth, "now, open your mouth and say 'ah'~"

Eren breathed out heavily through his nose, not opening his mouth at all. Should he quickly raise a complaint? The woman giggled at him, seeing how hard he was blushing from embarrassment.

...

He wished that this woman really would leave.

He wished that Jean hadn't been so annoying and right about how alluring the unusually basic omlette was.

And he wished that Historia was the one doing all of this to him right now instead of this woman whose name he did not even know...

...

"**Hey...**"

His saviour was the Queen of the Devils once more.

Eren blinked at how suddenly she appeared, as though she teleported right into the space before the table. His mood instantly brightened when he saw her... despite the cold sweat that was boiling off his body suddenly. Just how long had she been watching?

"Hmm? You're that newcomer right? The little goddess apparently..." her senior replied, not pleased to see her for some reason, "so? What do you want? I thought you relinquished serving this table? There's plenty of other customers who need attending to."

"Ohoho..." Historia smiled daggers and blades back, "judging by how you're acting, you seem to have no problems with dealing with plenty of other customers many leagues ahead of what I'll ever do. I feel your expertise is needed elsewhere."

"Hmph, well as you can see, I was just entertaining these gentlemen," throwing a hand in her hair, she let it flutter, "now if you'll excuse me, until your body develops more plentifully, there's no point in entertaining this handsome gentleman when he's clearly out of your league."

Eren gulped. He wanted to stand up right now, grab Historia's hand and leave. He wanted to at least tell Historia to not pay any attention, and have her sit next to him instead.

He's the one who felt out of her league. Yet he couldn't say that here without revealing how she was the Queen.

"No. I want her to serve me instead. Please leave." Eren confidently told the older maid. She blinked back at him disappointingly. "I'm not interested in whatever game you want to play. Find someone else."

It was quiet for a little while, and Eren only just noticed and remembered that Jean was still here, watching from the corner of his eye.

"Hmm, how boring," the maid at last got up and moved away from him, "if Eren Jaeger ever comes to the capitol, tell him there's plenty of people who would love to spend some pleasurable time with him."

...

She walked away at last, and the three were left at the table. Jean had slowly gone back to eating, while Eren waited for Historia to say something.

"Ma~ster~" she turned and stomped down her feet as she gazed down at Eren trembling before her, on the edge of his life as soon as he saw the dark smile on his sweetheart. It wasn't the first tine he had dealt with it.

"Y-Yes?" Eren replied uncertainly.

"I will be the one to service you in any way you request and be able to satisfy any of your needs alone, master~" Historia spoke without dropping a beat.

Jean spat his drink out across the table.

Eren's heart felt like it had just exploded in excitement and a stream of alien thoughts began clouding his whole mind, and before long the only thing he could focus on was Historia right in front of him, only in a private room for just the two of them.

"Please make full use of me however you wish because you sure as hell won't be having anyone else to misperform and embarrass themselves before you dear customer." Her face had not changed once, emphasising every syllable and meaning to the person on the table.

Of course it was aimed at Eren. But there was another hopefully person sitting next to him.

"W-Wait, so -" Jean's thoughts and wishes were brimming right at the edge. His hopes, dreams and passions almost didn't matter, when he was being told right now that -

"Not you. I'm talking to sexy over here," the maid looked dully at him, before turning back to the Titan shifter.

He really should be considering this a lot more cautiously, but lost in the moment, he lost all his senses at feeling this oddly familiar voice now.

"O-Oh…" Jean shrunk into himself, but suddenly rekindled his hope, "… can I get a different compliment?"

"Like what?" the maid turned back unamused.

"U-um, w-well… like h-handsome…?" He tried flaunting his hair, but stopped at seeing the vacant, uncaring look from the attractive angel of death.

"It's already taken," Historia pointed at Eren without blinking or changing her facial expression.

"O-oh… prince c-charming?"

"That's this guy," she pointed again at Eren.

"… Gorgeous?"

"Taken."

"Cutie?"

"Definitely this guy."

"Hot-bunchkins?"

"Only this guy."

"Sweetie-pie?"

"Still this guy."

"Super precious little darling snowflakins?"

"Who on earth even calls anyone that?"

"My mom did. On two occasions."

"…"

Both Eren and the maid stared right back at him in full seriousness.

"... Average looking Survey Corps guy, kindly eat up your meal now," spoke the maid like she was dead and never held any emotions in her voice. And yet, combined with that costume, he somehow felt enlightened. "Now shut up so I can talk with Eren already."

"Yes ma'am," Jean responded and went back to eating, letting this maid that felt familiar talk with E- "… wait-!"

"… Ah –" Both Eren and Historia jumped in their spots at the blunder.

Confirming his suspicions, Jean studied the maid closely again.

"You... just called him... wait-?!" Now staring back at the maid, he finally considered the recognisable features that he felt he knew from somewhere. Why Eren had looked at him appalled early. Why Eren had been acting as though he knew the maid already. Why the maid suddenly appeared back at their table. All of it became connected in Jean's mind. "Wh… hey… it's… I didn't recognize you... wait-! What are you doing here?!"

"Eh?!" the maid jumped back and looked a mix of uncertainty back at him, and a sign of acceptance that he had figured things out now, "y-you finally noticed then…"

Jean nodded, looking again and noticing all the changes that had been applied for an unusually effective disguise.

"I mean, shit you had me clueless when you're looking like that, you're in a place like this…" He rubbed his head and stood up, placing hid hands on the shoulders of the maid in attempt to be comforting, yet ending up with the opposite effect.

"Y-yeah alright… it's good at least that you couldn't recognise me for this long..." Historia stepped back at let Jean's arms fall, standing besides Eren's seat now. "So, could you please keep this a secret, Jean?"

"Yeah, course I will, but…" Jean reassured, and took a deep breath before gazing at what he was actually looking at.

Stepping back in closer, at a point where Historia leaned back a little again and Eren looked a little annoyed at, they both heard Jean speak in a hushed voice.

"**Armin**, what are you actually doing…?"

...

"…" The maid became wordless and stared at him like he was dust.

"No… Jean… no…" Eren's head fell into his hand and shook it.

"Huh, what?" Jean cocked his head and guessed after looking around the establishment once more, "ah, crap! Sorry I shouldn't say your name aloud here Armin. And you're here, disguised as a girl. But it's just that…"

"Jean…" Eren could hardly hold back how appalled he was, "you cannot be this stupid..."

"Hah? What?" Jean shrugged him off, "and didn't Historia tell you to stop being such an asshole to me, remember? Anyway, Armin, explain wha-"

At that point, combined from exhaustion, disappointment and her inner wish of just hugging Eren to herself after seeing some random girl trying to make a move on him, she did just that.

Falling onto his lap sidewards, Historia decided to just give up and rest a little. She was never working in the service industry again.

* * *

**That Evening – Wall Sina Orphanage**

They were collecting up the bed covers again. It was becoming their weekendly schedule to visit the orphanage since Historia would get time off here, though Eren had to ask the commander to for time out to help sometimes.

White sheets were pulled again by the soft air, slightly warmer than a few weeks ago.

The fabrics and cloth had already been carried back home by the orphans in little groups who were eager for dinner which had been specially brought in today. Eren had signalled to Historia earlier to come talk around the snow white covers while the guards were busy.

And it provided a good cover. Behind then was the empty countryside and the back of the orphanage doors where the kids were told not to go in case they lost sight of them, meaning nobody would see them from that direction.

"Your hair has gotten longer…" she commented off-handily, when the Queen managed to send the lazy kids in as well after pulling their ears lightly and threatening to not give them any supper before they raced off.

"Ah... yeah... would you... like it if I grew it out?" he twirled his locks slightly at the thought. The Titan shifter sat down on the grass for a little, his Queen joining him, setting down a basket which she had brought over from the wagon which her personal soldiers had dragged up.

"Eh? Y-yeah, I guess... it would be an interesting look I guess..." she became thoughtful. Suddenly picturing a longer haired Eren with his looks. "Actually yes. Do it. Right now."

Eren chuckled and agreed. He had never really paid much attention to his hair and had expected the opposite since Mikasa had offered to cut his recently. He guessed he had a reason to decline now... and an excuse to avoid them again...

He suddenly felt a light tug on his hair, seeing Historia pick at a curl and swirl it around her finger playfully. Smiling fondly at her, he grabbed a bit of her own hair and started twirling it around as well. Historia didn't notice it, instead leaning in at a particular spot on his ear and nipping Eren gently.

"A-Ah... Historia..." Eren moaned, feeling the unusual place stimulating him strangely. He felt her kiss him at strange spots throughout his hair, short and fast.

When she eventually leaned back out, Eren had tried to do the same with her golden lock still in his hand. Instead, Historia stole his lips just as he was about to lean forward. She then pinned him down.

Somehow he hadn't even noticed laying on the fresh growing grass until he opened his eyes to notice the grey sky above them. "Oh… what happened to no more kisses…?"

Historia smirked and trailed a finger along his face, touching his lips tenderly before she leaned down again and forced his mouth open and dived her tongue in.

Eren was dizzy with how unusually possessive Historia felt right now. And he loved it. That was the only thing he could tell or care for right now, nothing else mattering just as always and every time.

A lingering thought of wishing he could mix his hidden relationship, with everything else that he was struggling over, was the only other thing that he vaguely registered.

Pushed down against the earth, Historia was devouring and drowning him in arousing liquids and hot breaths. He felt something bite against his tongue, before releasing his own tongue had managed to snake into Historia's own and she had lightly bit him with a teasing look.

"There..." she let him fall against the earth again and got off him, "that's my revenge. You now have the right of kissing me again. I'm a benevolent ruler after all."

"Right... Thank you for your... benevolenticness, your Highness," he smiled and arched his back upwards. _'What the hell does that even mean...' _he thought. "Or do you really just want to still serve your master this eagerly?"

Historia's eyebrow twitched at the memory. She had gone up and gotten lost in the moment again. And yet... she felt she said every word with utmost sincerity. "Oh yes, master~~~, I really want to serve you so badly, right now. Would you like dinner, a bath or perhaps me~."

Eren was having a hard time not sniggering right now and keeping up with their teasing. Historia, while beet red and looking like she was about to faint again, had leaned in and looped her hands around Eren's neck. "I-I'll have you I guess, but you'll need some punishment for your earlier poor performance."

"Ah, does master really want to punish me~?" the Queen cooed at him and batted her eyelashes, "what must I do to redeem myself, master~?"

Leaning into her ear, Eren whispered.

"You'll have to promise to never play Krista in anyway..."

"..." Historia went quiet for a moment. She then let go of her arms around Eren and turned her body round, so that her back was now leaning into Eren's chest, and his chin was resting on top of her head while she sat in his lap.

Slowly, he wrapped his arms around her waist and cuddled her gently, telling her how he understands.

"... With you... when we're alone... I can be completely honest..." she spoke quietly but loud enough for him to hear, "... if you asked most people, who they would rather, then... you know they would pick Krista over me..."

"Yeah, I know..." he replied, "but you don't need to care what others think, if... they can't just remove you as the Queen anymore... I wouldn't let it ever happen anyway, but they can't. But... but... you know... that..."

Eren couldn't finish what he was saying. Because he wasn't really any different in that regard. They both had to act in front of people. Hiding lies and keeping secrets of the lives which they lived for and by their own wish, they both had held an old front and cover on their intentions.

"Eren..." she called his name and soothingly stroke his arms, "... I don't... know if it will. But maybe the day will come where someday we don't have to act in front of everyone, I know... I know... You know... even if we're acting like our past selves on the surface... we're both different now, right?"

"Yeah, I know, but..." he grit his teeth in frustration. None of it was directed at her though he could see it was making her struggle as well. "but... I... I don't like it. I hate it."

"I do too." Historia reassured him, snuggling herself around his body, "but right now... you've got to keep masking it... you've got to keep playing the act that you must never fall for **again**... we both do..."

"..." Eren dragged his chin across her head before laying his forehead on her. "... It's frustrating."

"I know," she whispered back.

"... I don't know what to do... I... want to make it so that you don't have to act like Krista ever again, but... I just don't know how..." He let a few tears drop in secret. He felt a few on his hands as well. Where they his or hers?

Unable to tell, he could only focus on the comforting presence of the girl who supported him alone. He could go back. He could go back to his friends right now and apologise for the recent distancing from them. He could let them support him as well instead of burdening Historia alone.

But he didn't want to. There was no way he wanted to burden them ever.

Historia was only carrying his weight alone because...

It was her that...

* * *

**Half an Hour Later...**

"Hey anyway... um..." Historia spoke up after they had stayed like that silently until the invisible tears disappeared, "... Happy Birthday Eren..."

"Eh? Oh..." Eren blinked in surprise, remembering after all what started this, "... oh right, it's today isn't it."

"Hmph," she pouted at him, "... is that all your going to say?"

"Uhh... yeah?" he shrugged, not knowing what else to say.

Historia glared at him, before moving slowly towards the basket she had brought with them and pulling out the cover that she had frantically added earlier this evening.

"You made me feel so genuinely happy when you told me it was the day I was born," the Queen reminded him, "and... it's the same for me... but me repeating the same thing makes it lose value you know..."

"Then don't say it," he smiled, dismissing Historia's obvious refusal to it, "that was... just the truth... besides, you're my present right?"

"Eeh?!" she squeaked and blushed, "y-yeah, I am, but... um... we can't do it here..."

"Wh- N-No, I didn't mean it like that!" Eren panicked at the implication, "I-I... it's just... I'm not ready for that yet..."

"I know~," Historia smirked at glee at him, caught in a trap he was happy to stay in forever if he could, "but master~, didn't you say earlier that you wanted me~."

"Yeah... but I meant for just kisses and stuf-" She kissed him, cutting him off quickly.

They sighed pleasantly together as the sky slowly darkened and the bedsheets were still hiding them.

"Anyway, I've got a different present for you..." Historia broke away, and turned around to pick something out of the basket. Two somethings, Eren noted. "Close you eyes."

Eren did as he was told and waited, hearing two steps on the soft ground advance towards him. Something was thrown around his neck and he opened his eyes.

"Oi!" Too early it seemed as Historia spread her fingers apart into a 'V' shape and poked both his eyes close at the same time. "Wait one more second.

He nodded while scratching his eyes a little after the jab. He noticed something around his shoulders right now. It was still generally cold in the early spring, ever since he arrived here and dropped his military great jacket off by the wagon with Jean's stuff to keep it from getting dirty.

Eren only had his old tunic still on with a short vest on top that he had borrowed from Armin and was really much too small for him. He hadn't had his longcoat back either ever since it apparently had shrunken a few weeks ago and Historia had taken it.

It didn't feel like a scarf, like the one he used to wear before he had passed it on to Mikasa, now 7 years ago. It was bigger, and much more suited for the slowly increasing cold of night right now.

"Okay... you might as well open your eyes anyway..." Historia hesitantly spoke. As soon as he did so, Eren noticed just what he had been looking for.

She was already holding it up so that it would not be dragging across the ground, while pretty much unable to put it on him without naturally giving away what it was.

"Ah, so you did find it again..." Eren gladly took it off her hands and was about to throw it on again, when he noticed what had been wrapped around his shoulders earlier.

It was like a crocheted cape but also a shoulder scarf at the same time. It was a bit similar to the pellegrina that he'd seen some of the Church priests wear but far more casual and the sort of thing which would compliment Historia's regular casual dress that she wore.

Exactly just like the one which Historia wore. Looking again, he noticed that Historia was still wearing her own as well around her shoulders, while she brushed a bit of her hair back behind her ear.

"S-So listen..." Historia called his attention once more, "I was lying a few weeks ago when I said your coat had just shrunk-"

"I figured," Eren smiled down at her. "You tore my original hoodie, the one you bought for me, didn't you... or damaged it in some way or something. You tried to sneakily buy another one for me but when I tried it on that time a few weeks ago, it was way too small, and I could tell it was brand new. You got really upset with yourself because of that and since today was coming up, you planned to knit it back for me and fix whatever you did."

"E-Eh?! You..." she looked upon him in shock. She had assumed he figured most of it out, but he should have no way to know she had been trying desperately to learn how to knit. "... You also figured out about me knitting..."

"How could I not notice the tiny cuts on your fingers?" Eren smiled and touched her hand, holding it gently and feeling the numerous small cuts around her fingers, "there's no way this was caused by you working at that restaurant. It would have to be a small, pointy blade... it basically had to be a needle. You put all your effort into it but you're still feeling bad for not getting the hang of it right now... despite all the effort you put in, you still end up feeling bad about something like that huh..."

Historia was silent, feeling Eren gently caress the tiny cuts she had accidently stabbed into herself from spending every night trying to mend his jacket.

"But... even though this jacket is the same size, I can tell it's also brand new..." he continued. "You ended up working at the maid store to get the money to pay for this jacket since you would have to get it customly ordered and would cost a lot to get such a matching version. But... instead of taking the money out from the military government's share, you wanted to earn it yourself or you'd probably be thinking it won't have the same meaning... and you wanted me out this morning since I'd figure this out, right?"

...

He sounded like someone else completely, but she felt that it was completely him that was still there.

"When did you get so perceptive..." the small Queen pouted back at him, and nodding her head slowly in confirmation. Everything he had said was exactly spot on.

Eren laughed, "you're just obvious for me to see through. You're just... too easy to understand."

"Even though your one of the only two who could actually read through me..." she argued back. He used to be reckless. He know just acted reckless. "But... really, you're... pretty clever... or... you just became clever somewhere recently... or maybe 'clever' isn't the right word to use, but... you're much more collected and aware now..."

"I guess... maybe because I had someone to open my eyes," he bowed down to peck her on her cheek to her blushing surprise before throwing the longcoat through the air and pulling his arms though the sleeves easily this time.

The soft orange shoulder cape-scarf, was still wrapped around his shoulders as he finally had his longcoat back. Albeit, it was a different one, however he was glad that Historia had chosen it herself that time several months ago.

"I-I'm still going to knit back your first one back together someday, okay?" she rubbed her hands and fingers again, having born no result to her efforts, "and m- that little shoulder cape was just for matching things..."

"Even though this is the one you've worn until now?" Eren smirked again as another little annoyed firework lit up in her head again, "the one your wearing is also brand new... and this one still has your lingering scent in it..."

"Ah... you got that as well..." she sighed in defeat. Wasn't the idea for at least a bit of it to be a surprise? It wasn't fair when he had done just that, given her true warmth at night and she couldn't do anything in exchange...

Eren chuckled, walking past her and looking into the basket again. They should really start collecting up the bedsheets properly soon as it was quickly getting almost completely dark now. Looking down into the basket, Eren leaned down and pulled out the remaining dark brown piece of clothing that was left.

Pulling it out, he realised that it was the other copy of his jacket, the smaller version which he couldn't fit. He turned back around his shoulders to see Historia sulking a little and trying to think of something.

"Oh, E...ren..." Historia turned around to him when she felt him looking at her and Eren took the chance to fling it around Historia's back, swinging it through the air, just as the hood feel down on top of her head as he brought it down to cover her golden hair.

She blinked at him, before seeking the sleeves with both her hands and pulling the rest of it on. Eren took a step back and smiled. "You look cute like that."

"Hmph, it's not like I wanted matching hoodies and cloaks or anything," she pouted at him and pretending to look cross again.

Eren vaguely considered how she missed the 'idiot' line but was caught in the moment when Historia wrapped him into a hug and pushed him down again onto the grassy floor. "H-Hey..."

She traced her finger across his cheekbone and laid a single silent kiss on him, before nuzzling her face into his presence. "... Master~?"

"... Yeah?" Eren gulped, now getting a sinister feeling from Historia again.

"Allow me to perform my exclusive ending service, reserved for you," Historia whispered, feeling his body up through his shirt hard that a sudden concern that she'd rip it appeared.

She kissed him deeply, refusing to let go as she sucked his lips dry and puffy, and then making them wet again when she licked all around with her slick tongue, returning her own moisture in place.

He moaned into her mouth, the hot air was breathed through into her cavern and made her throat tickle comfortably.

Her hands moved down his body, away from his messy hair and caressing his nape, slipping down around his shoulders and onto his chest.

And then even further down.

"A-Ah, Historia?!" Eren pulled away, gasping as he felt her hand and blushing like mad. "W-What… are you…"

He felt her hand at the spot. One arm was still snaked around him and pressed its heat across the side of his face, trying to pull him back into the kiss now only connected by a single trail of saliva that was sticking across his clothes. Her other hand…

"I-I'm confiscating this," Historia's pale skin was far closer to the colour of fresh apples that had grown fully and were ready for picking than any ordinary blush.

Her voice and body trembled, as she suddenly massaged the outline between his pants and what lay directly beneath, separated by only a couple thin layours.

"Eh?!" Reaching down one of his own hands, he gently took hold of her wrist and pull her hand away from the already hard and growing part of his body that she refused to budge from.

Instead, Historia snaked his hand off and felt the spot between his legs up and down, gasping into his ear and watching him muffle a whimper of delight at her feel. She saw Eren looking at her from the corner of his eyes, looking excitedly at her, but also uncertain. She leaned into his shoulder.

"This is royal property from now on," she whispered into his ear seductively and confidently this side, now that he couldn't see her read steaming face which was hidden in his luscious dark brown curls.

"W-What exactly do you mean?" Eren gulped, unable to resist her even if he wanted to. His pants were far too tight, feeling like he would explode if she kept just stroking over the top of the fabric.

But he also didn't feel the time was quite right yet for that.

"T-This…" she gripped him once more, forcing him to swallow his breath to not moan, and then lifted her hand of, slipping out from his shoulder and onto his chest again. She stared into his eyes and kissed his lips. "And this."

Leaning down, she gently bit his neck, and sucked at his tough skin, leaving her mark and whispering "this too… I'm confiscating it all for personal use of her royal Majesty… I hope there are no complaints."

His head felt dizzy, only able to respond to hr by pulling her in and kissing her more, losing his hands and threading through her hair and pulling it lightly through his hands, feeling the incomprehensible smoothness.

"Sorry, but I do," he pecked her up and down her neck in short, quick breaths, "it already belongs to a Historia Reiss, the girl beneath the crown and all masks. You'll have to deal with her, but I don't think she will be very willing to share."

Their eyes connected, longingly, pushing away everything else that mattered away, running away from the world that hurt them so much and continued to drag them down.

They would have to return to that world to bear what they had to. And what they chose to. Getting away from it, just for the moment, was all that it was.

"Mhm. Historia is here now then, to remind you who you belong to," the devilish smirk made her look like a true Devil, ruling all of the Earth around here, only wishing to rule a single thing. For one single thing to belong to her.

Eren smiled, and smashed their lips together, furiously making in and out of her mouth, both of them holding firmly down on the other's head and tying to suck each other's faces off.

The moaning became sloppy and filled with messy mumbles, muffled by the abnormal amount of liquids mixing in their mouths, practically drowning them.

Their tongues swam like serpents through ocean and land, and then transforming into much more smooth motions, like swans or ducks gracing the waters.

Heat caused their spines to shiver from cold intense delight, both mouths so sensitive to any sudden touch after being rubbed so hard against each other moments ago.

Eren pulled out of her hair, and cupped her face just as he felt Historia copy him instinctively. They opened their eyes at the same time and smiled through the gentle tongue touching, cheeks aching a little as they realised both and been smiling furiously the whole time and were stretching their cheek muscles to the point they were starting to burn.

They didn't care, and began another sudden storming of each other's mouths, nipping at each other's teeth and scooping up and in circles through all unexplored regions of the other's caverns, ravaging every space they could find and claiming it all as their own.

Explosions run through nerves, causing them to twitch and grind against each other, cores over a dangerous point above the other and hearts up together.

The thought to tear the other's clothes off tried to seduce their minds but they pushed it back for now, despite the tortuously hot and slightly damp feelings they had in their lower regions, both could only try to merge face first.

The satisfaction of uncontrollably thrashing tongues into each other, sloppily swishing around as if they had their own will and then ramming them up against and all around each other's again was unmatchable and already enough to keep them entranced for lifetimes, let alone this single moment.

They managed to breath at least for a second when separating, several enormous mass collections of saliva were adjoining their lips at half a dozen spots, refusing to part from the merged mess of unchainable and free feelings.

Historia could feel his massive length beneath her, her own sitting directly above, cloth ever teasing them, before they ignored it again and delved into each's mouth in another powerful kiss.

Their chins were drenched from the copious amounts of liquids spilling out from the collections of mixed saliva like reservoirs that both had.

They wanted to stay like that for at least another hour before they had to go back. Noticing the stars now coming out to the sides of the goddess of the sun above him, he agreed to seeing the rest of Historia's surprise for her 'master', as she was calling him for just this day apparently, in her own private room.

That of course meant more of Historia teasing him with hot makeout sessions, and making him strip off his shirt. He hadn't mustered the courage yet beyond that, as he considered what this was soon leading up to as the next stage of a relationship, while he helped Historia reach up and pull down the sheets that she would fold.

"Hey, maybe we should wear the shoulder cape on top of the longcoat?" Historia suggested to him as they properly began piling up the covers in the remaining basket and trying to compress them in as much as possible.

"Yeah, then we need to start wearing underparts on the outside, get some masks and a 'E' and 'H' letter painted on our shirts," Eren thought of the memory he had scene, and the ideas that had been brought to life in other places. He struggled to believe they were even in the same time sometimes, "we can use ODM gear to fly. You can be the supervillain and I'll be the henchman I guess."

"Hm? So that's another thing they do in that place..." Historia commented of what went on beyond the other side. "They've got some really unusual but nice ideas there as well..."

"Yeah, I guess so..." Eren scratched his ear a little, "are you thinking... of starting with the orphans here and celebrating their birthdays?"

"That would be really nice, right?" Eren nodded back in answer, "but the problem is that the kids from the underground don't know when they were even born... when they don't know what season it even is on the surface, it's hard to start something like that..."

"You could still start right? Like with celebrating..." Eren trailed off while they worked and discussed all sort of things.

He sometimes found it strange how they could always keep a conversation, never growing tired of talking to that girl he had once avoided completely and while he disliked her, he really had held no interest to that girl.

But this girl was completely different.

And he wanted for her to no longer have to act behind an old mask someday.

* * *

**Btw, Goth Maid Historia is basically as she is in the AoT game with that outfit, if you just search it up lol, dunno how well I did at describing it but then I often find things after reading them in any media to come out differently than I pictured in movies, but yeah…**

**Also I heard it's Japanese kiss day apparently… 3 days ago that is… so there's light kissu ^ I guess... someone educate me on how kisses feel like/are done so I can envision things better lmfao.**

**Warning Manga Spoilers:**

* * *

The powerful Titan shifter stared into the dawn of yet another day.

"I'll locate Zeke," he told the big group of soldiers behind him, "that's it."

They dispersed almost immediately, scurrying to their command and hideouts as per the orders they had been instructed with beforehand.

The man was soon left standing alone again, with only a small squad awaiting him to follow.

Staring into the pure white light, many memories came back.

His hands wandered through the dark brown longcoat that carried her scent and feel that he had longed for so long.

He had recognized it immediately.

The several pockets could be felt. A piece of paper, a note of some sort, and the carefully sewn together stitches on the back of it, filled with the unrelenting effort of small hands working her best night after night.

He hoped the day he could throw off his own old mask wasn't too far away.


	4. Chapter 4 - How Eren Should Have Kissed

**Just a short since season 3's finished, officially to me as my salty season haha, but wanted to add this in at the end though it's a little late but yeah. This short is not serious at all and meant to be light-hearted.**

**Summary: The Survey Corps have returned after reclaiming Wall Maria, uncovering the Basement and learning the truth of the reward… and what does Eren get? A tie. And permission to kiss the Queen's hand. So he does just that.**

**Note on Spoilers: Nothing so long as you've seen the latest episode 59 but yeah!**

* * *

**Fragment 4 - Eine Angemessene Belohnung**

**Awards Ceremony for the Survey Corps**

Her tiny, gentle steps upon the carpet began the tune in his head. Looking up from the position at which he was kneeling, Eren directed his eyes into the orbs of sky colour, a reflection of the ocean that had seemed to hold more life than what it was meant to reflect.

The colour of the unstained ocean had already sunk in, a usual sight which he was already bored off after seeing it for just a short while.

Historia made eye contact with him from above as she held out the tie of special honour that she looped over his collar. She blinked at him wordlessly while he stared back. He was supposed to keep his head down, bowing but Historia didn't mind.

_'I'm not… prepared to sacrifice… **Historia's** life…' _Eren decided without a doubt in his mind. He wasn't prepared now to cut her lifespan to 13 more cycles, and he never would be.

The string was tucked down under his collar by the Queen's delicate hands which moved towards the Survey Corps clasp that kept the piece of leather together.

'_What should I do?' _Eren thought, lowering down to her hands which straightened and pulled up the bolo tie by it's slide. She was small. For some reason, he was noting this in a slightly different way than usual.

Historia's hand slipped into the formal posture, permitting him to take it slightly, lean down and kiss it.

Fealty and Loyalty.

A symbol of a soldier's promise to the one they serve under.

'_I can't tell… anyone about this…' _His thoughts came full circle again, proceeding nowhere as he simply stared at her awaiting hand, full of youth and a steady flow of life that he wanted to never change.

There were no scars nor any point at which her skin faltered. But behind it all, there was lasting signs of past and continuing pains and etched work put into endless practice.

"Eren…" Historia whispered to him, gesturing. He looked up to see her naturally a little confused. There should be no reason for him to wait for anything.

He had to kiss his Queen as a display of simple devotion.

_'So obvious...'_ he thought instead. Things which nobody seemed to notice about her, only seeing some flawless beauty on the outside. Of course, if he was asked then Eren would agree that Historia was physically cute now. _'How does nobody see the way you look like you just want to get this over with and rather be somewhere else... it's so cute...'_

He almost smiled. He could probably have mustered one if he tried but instead, he felt his body become lighter for a moment. As if something had been relieved from his shoulders.

_'Ah...' _His choice was already decided. The meaning of it all sunk in. He was not going to sacrifice Historia. He was not going to let anyone know. There was no way he could, because...

Taking his Queen's hand between his thumb and fingers, he felt the electric bursts begin to spread around his body as he prepared to kiss her hand.

There was no personal feelings in it, only a formality. As far as he was concerned, there was no value in it. The symbol that soldiers would make, clasping a fisted hand to their heart in devotion was no different.

Just a soldier, displaying their loyalty to someone above them.

Holding onto her hand gently, he was struggling to resist right now.

There was more to it than that. He wanted there to be more to it than that.

Right now… even just personally for him as an individual, all that kissing his Queen's hand would display is his devotion to her safety.

Prioritizing her life over the newly named nation.

But it wasn't because she was his Queen or anything of that line of priorities as a soldier.

It was because she was **Historia.**

"Eren…?" He looked up to see the subtly blushing beauty whispering a little harshly at him again, asking him what was wrong.

He grasped where he was again, and leaned in to press his lips upon her knuckle as was customary. A brief, gentle kiss. He didn't even need to properly press his lips if he didn't want to, it was only a custom as Historia was only the figurehead Queen and not it's actual ruler, he could just cover her hand with them without touching.

Hanji and Levi had done just that, they were the ones bearing an equal level of control and influence as her.

Her hand was so soft. While holding with her nimble fingers, Eren senses began to fade. He wanted to kiss and swear to keep Historia's life safe, not the Queen's.

Nearing his lips towards her knuckle, he breathed a short gasp of air at how her skin looked so smoothly delicate, yet possessing strength beating through the blood vessels that he could feel so strongly.

Eren mentally apologized to her for taking her time up when she seemed troubled earlier. It was her first time doing this as Queen, and he could feel how tense she was while giving them badges of honour for an empty victory that she wasn't unrelated to.

Her pulse felt a little fast, as if his long pause had made her feel a little more alive in the slowly electrifying feeling.

Pressing his lips upon the side of her hand, missing her knuckle accidentally and instead seemingly touching a soft spot with how her hand seem to shake from the touch of his lips.

The memories flooded in-connected with sparks. He saw her half-sister and his father. He begged to her before her eyes changed seemingly omniscient. Eren pushed it aside.

He didn't care about that right now. Memories which he could see again another time, didn't matter to him right now.

_'Love someone inside the Walls. If you can't, we are doomed to repeat it all again. The same history. The same mistakes. Again and again.'_

The one thing in his head was that memory.

Historia's hand shuddered, as though she had felt something. She tugged her hand lightly away. Eren kept a soft grasp that rooted her to the spot.

His green, powerful eyes, full of clear intention opened up at her. The Queen looked into them and shuddered again, with warmth flowing through her like she had been swallowed up whole.

...

"Eren..." she muttered his name for a third time, in a much softer voice now.

Everyone's heads had turned towards their first Titan shifter, the holder of the Founding Titan.

He could feel everyone staring at him while he instead stared up at Historia.

His thoughts were elsewhere completely.

He couldn't register where he was, nor who was around him, only the person who he was going to protect no matter what.

He wasn't a soldier vowing to protect his Queen.

In the moment of losing his head in the clouds, Eren sighed.

He needed to properly express what that really meant.

Eren stood up.

Pushing himself out of kneeling, he stood up naturally, a foot over the very confused Queen right in front of him.

...

All eyes from the front to the back of the room were upon him now.

Some 400 people in the room, his Survey Corps comrades, the garrison of military police higher-ups, others who were meant to be rewarded for playing their part in the coup, security guards, noble officials and Historia.

They all stared at either his back or sides while only Historia could properly see his face and the intensity of his eyes that were making her slightly back away.

Eren forget they existed for the moment.

He looked at Historia's truly gorgeous face that he was looking differently right now. She was blushing ever so slightly more by every second, and her soft lips were ajar slightly in confusion.

While still holding her hand, now in an awkward embrace, he felt her pulse quicken slightly more by looking at him.

Her untouched lips didn't need any make-up whatsoever.

The alluring soft pink colour called to his and the one distant memory that kept echoing in his heart.

She looked flustered and fidgety.

Feeling absorbed in his emerald eyes, her knees began to lose strength.

She couldn't even wonder what he was doing.

…

The silence continued for another second.

The only sound was of a distant ticking clock and the slight shuffling of soldiers who were standing in rank behind the Survey Corps.

Not one of them was whispering. They all stared in utter confusion, wondering what was going to happen next.

The way in which he was standing, still holding on the Queen's hand, while looking upon her as an equal.

As though his heart had suddenly been stolen by the maiden and he was looking upon her, about to request to court her.

…

Eren's right hand moved at last.

While his left hand held onto the Queen's right, he carefully grabbed her crown by it's ridge and took it off her head delicately.

He threw it up in the air behind him without a care.

It accidentally hit someone in the crowd who passed out while standing on the spot, eyes glued to the scene.

His right arm was free again.

The silence continued for another seconds while everyone's jaws hung open at what Eren had just done.

Eren smiled.

Historia was frozen with her lips spread about slightly as she tried to close them to form words.

...

Eren gave a strong tug with his left hand.

Historia tumbled forward right towards his chest she was pulled into, the eep in her voice dying inside, about to trip into him.

His right arm saves her.

Her centre if gravity falls backwards again, as she's about to fall, his right arm grabs her waist entirely from both sides.

She's leaning back, unable to move while her right hand is pulled away from her by Eren's left.

The ceiling is above her.

And so are his gleaming eyes.

Eren leaned down, and pressed his lips onto Historia's.

...

The entire room was a work of statues.

Some of their eyes bulged out of their sockets, others' pupils shrunk into minuscule size.

One of the oldest soldier's fake teeth fell out.

8 members of the Survey Corps were computing whether this was some sort of bad fantasy.

The 9th was enjoying every moment of the taste of Historia's lips and her panicked, exploding heartrate combined with the flows of heat through her complexion.

Meanwhile, Historia felt she was dreaming.

Something just have gone wrong in her head that is making her she's getting kissed by her closest remaining friend.

This was surely just some mindgame brought about by using the Founding Titan power to change her memories.

There was no harm in enjoying a little dream. Subconsciously, that thought made her instinctively kiss back slightly, pushing force into his mouth as she let herself be absorbed in.

But most of all, she truly didn't understand what was going on. As if expecting him to pull away and say something to explain everything logically, she kept her eyes wide open, not breaking eye contact with her kisser once.

Instead of pulling away, Eren kept applying the kiss deeper, rolling his lips gentle down and blowing a short gust of hot air through to her teeth and make her trembling lower lip vibrate a little more sweetly.

The only thing he could feel, was the thundering and overwhelming feeling enveloping inside him. It felt so right. It felt like the best feeling in the world to be kissing Historia right in front of everyone right now.

At what point had this feeling been lurking within? It felt as though he had desired this for such a long time. Pushing aside thoughts and feelings for the sake of what had to be done was what he decided was best for the sake of victory.

The victory no longer mattered. Historia was who mattered.

The safety of this island could not be placed before Historia in the state of mind that he was in right now.

Cherishing the feeling of Historia beginning to panick with a need for air, Eren didn't know why he never did this sooner.

_'What the hell was wrong with me... what the hell was distracting me from her since that day in the cave...'_ he thought. He was sure there was probably a good answer to that, but whatever it was, it was a good enough reason to him right now.

She made his heart beat so much.

It had stopped beating.

And she had restarted it again.

At last, he parted away from her slowly, smiling sweetly down at her as she clung in his arm in disbelief.

He had just stole Historia's first kiss along with giving his own.

Eren's lips motioned, forming the words that he mouthed to her without saying them.

Historia understood them clearly.

And fainted on the spot.

"... Eh?" Eren blinked at how her head seemed to swirl to her side while her blue eyes rolled around before her eyelids closed in a second and she was hanging limply in his arms.

He blinked again and shook her a little whispering for her to wake up. Eren stopped after a while to look around him. Mikasa's eyes suddenly looked like dark pools, enough to make people pass away from shock. Armin's mouth was hanging so wide upon that drool was starting to drip out.

"..." The Titan Shifter looked around the room and saw that everyone else basically had the same expression. "... What? Why are you all staring?"

Nobody answered. Half of them slowly started to work again and gaze at him as though he had just asked the stupidest thing ever, while the other half was still virtually motionless.

"Fine," Eren sighed annoyingly, pulling up his hand further up the fainted Historia's back and swooped his other hand down below her knees so that he picked her up and carrying her bridal style, "I'll go get a room then."

Eren left out the side door.

The only accompanying sound in response was the clattering of closing doors, one after the other as Eren carried the blonde in his arms somewhere deeper into the palace.

The room exploded into outrage.

* * *

**The Next Day…**

"Mr E-Eren Jaeger, do you know why you've been summoned here today?" The Queen, who was wearing her customary military jacket for the occasion, spoke up from the front of the hall.

The courtroom at which he was standing in, rope tied around his wrists held out in front of him, soldiers surrounding every door and window, was just as rowdy and awkward as it was trying to be serious.

Eren had been brought into the room a few moments ago before the call for order was given and the room had slowly fallen to just ever-continuing whispers.

The awards ceremony yesterday had been put on hold and was to be rescheduled sometime a week later to be done again. After he had been chased through the palace all afternoon while Historia was in a state of shock in his arms.

Soon after, he had been properly arrested after Historia had been 'rescued' from the mad spell in which he was in, and spent the night in prison, with no visitors coming to see him.

It was his first time hearing Historia speak since he kissed her, and she still looked flustered on embarrassed while staring at him.

"Sorry… is it because I'm a bad kisser?" he looked at her sincerely and asked without hesitation, as if it was a genuine answer.

Right now, Historia was also the judge for his trial.

"Eh?!" Historia eeped from the judge's seat, and the witnesses suddenly rolled out his attitude which he ignored completely, "no, no you're a goo- no, that's not why you're here Ere- Mr Jaeger!"

She slammed the gavel down several times to silence the people shouting in the room. The 'scandal' had already been leaked out and it hadn't pleased a great many of people.

With every hit downwards, the top of the gavel loosened as she bang it down harshly to muffle out the embarrassing whispers about false reports that Eren had apparently taken him to private quarters, stripped her and... proceeded further.

The top of the gavel flew off and hit a person in the crowds, the same person who happened to have gotten hit by her flying crown on the day before, leaving Historia with only the handle of the hammer left.

"Mr Jaeger, y-you're here because of forcibly causing unpermitted and obscene physical contact!" she declared his charge, barely able to look at him as she said it, "how do you wish to plea your innocence?"

"Huh?" Eren quirked his head on confusion, "but you looked like you were really enjoying it..."

Historia flushed bright scarlet as her core started melting again with the roar of the crowd, "I-I did not!"

He looked up at her unconvinced. Thinking back, he did feel a little bad now for just doing it without asking, but he didn't recall most people asking to do it, only acting when they thought that the time was right.

"Oh... sorry about that Historia," he apologized sincerely, making a mental note to ask next time, "I'll accept whatever punishment you wish to personally give me."

The people huffed upon hearing that, seemingly trying to gossip about any little thing that was happening right now. Historia's mouth opened and closed as she looked around and breathed out.

Bringing the handle of the gavel down again and calling for silence, she breathed in, "Eren Jaeger. As you make no attempt in denying the charges against you, I'll proceed with your sentence forthwith."

The room was silent again, as Historia rose up, and suddenly picked up a sword as she descended from the judge's bench and walked right up in front of Eren. It was a sword, designed for executions of great soldiers or generals who had betrayed the royal family.

Everyone stayed silent as they watched their Queen approach the hope of humanity, and the only key to their safety within the Founding Titan. Executing Eren Jaeger was naturally out of the question, even without that, his powers of regeneration as a Titan shifter were known, although it's capabilities were disputed amongst rumours.

Alternatively however, it permitted a new level of torture for the target.

The blonde Queen stared down onto the unconcerned and trusting eyes of her friend. Unsheathing the sword, she held it out in front of her while keeping her eyes set.

"Eren Jaeger," she said his full name, "for the crime of indecent contact, I will now hand down your punishment personally."

The room was silent again.

She stared straight into his emeralds of hidden levels of values.

Historia leaned down, and smashed her lips into Eren's.

...

Another second passed while he kept his lips presented to her, kissing back while the room was shut silent once again.

Holding onto each other by their mouths, fully engulfing each other's gaps and squishing the gentle soft kisses in tandem, they ignored what anyone else around them was doing and continued their staring contest.

They parted at last for air, the room still frozen.

"Eren… idiot…" she muttered beneath her breath to him, "that was my first kiss… Warn me next time so we could enjoy it more together."

"Sorry..." he apologized to her truly, both sending a knowing smile to each other, "I'll make it up to you."

Motioning her hand upwards, blade still in hand, she easily severed the ropes binding Eren's hands together and freed him in a single movement.

Casting the sword aside without care, she looped one of her arms beneath his knees, and held the other one up at his back.

She picked the much larger boy in her hands with a little bit of struggle.

Carrying her Titan shifter bridal style, Historia left out the front door with him.

She proceeded to take him to her royal bedroom for his new training.

* * *

**Alternative scenario is for Eren and Historia to just lose it all and start a rough love session right there lmao… or just Eren should have taken her hand and began licking her fingers haha. Or just... dived straight down lol.**

* * *

"S-So, um... Mikasa... are you... alright...?" Jean was the first to try and being the topic back up.

"Yes."

"O-oh... you sure...?" he glanced to the side, begging Armin for some help.

"Yea."

"Hey... Mikasa... Are you fine with what just happened?" Armin tried to take over.

"Yes."

"Okay... um... do you want to have dinner with us today, instead of... you know... doing... _this_?" the blond asked.

"Yes."

"O-oh okay! So... is this... gift... meant for Historia, Eren or someone else?

"Yes."


End file.
